


No Happier Family

by CheekyBrunette



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Harry is Zayn and Liam's dad, Kid Fic, Liam is seven, Louis is Niall's dad, M/M, Niall is three, Zayn is five, and references to neglect, but I figured since I alluded to it that it should be tagged, but there isn't any ACTUAL rape or underage written in there, everyone is a mess, there are also references to child abuse, there are some references to child molestation, ziall is really only there if you squint cause they're preschoolers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-15
Updated: 2015-02-15
Packaged: 2018-03-12 23:50:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 25,142
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3359885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CheekyBrunette/pseuds/CheekyBrunette
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Louis feels like he's let Niall down, but all he's ever wanted is the best for his son. Harry started adopting kids before he found someone to settle down with, and now he's looking for the person to fill the hole in his family. </p>
<p>Everyone is a little traumatized, but they still manage to find joy in one another.</p>
            </blockquote>





	No Happier Family

Louis stood at the doorway to his hotel room, carrying a packed up duffle bag in his left hand and his son in his right. He bounced the boy up a bit higher on his hip. "Alright, Niall. This is gonna be the last time we see this place," he promised. He would never make Niall live in a cramped hotel suit again. "Do you wanna say goodbye?"

Niall looked at him with big, confused eyes as he clutched his stuffed rabbit tightly to his chest. The little blonde buried his nose between the bunny's ears. "No more home again?" he asked, short and sweet per usual.

"No, Niall, remember? We're going to a new home. A real home. With lots of rooms, and a yard, and a place to keep toys, and books, and games, and whatever else you'd like that wouldn't fit in here," Louis reminded him. Moving out of their old house had been the best he could do for Niall, but now he had found a real place for them to stay and settle down.

Niall sucked on his fingers, blinking at Louis for a moment. "The apartment," he replied around his hand. Louis felt a weight roll off his shoulders.

"Yes, love. You remember; we went to see it together. And your room has a big closet and the racecar bed we bought you, yeah? And our building even has a pool for you, won't that be fun?" he questioned.

Niall squirmed in his arms. "Here has a pool," he replied. "Here my bed is with you." The blonde's eyes started to tear up. Louis sighed and set down their shared suitcase. That –plus the tiny backpack on Niall's small shoulders- contained all their belongings. When Louis had left Jace… He had left everything. He took what he could of his and Niall's in a rush and never looked back.

Louis's arms wrapped around his son's shoulders, and he coddled him close. He couldn't seem to ever find a good enough grip on Niall these days. They were both constantly pulling each other closer. "I know you are used to living here, buddy, but we need more space than just this little room. We need a kitchen so I can make you mac and cheese and a tub so I can give you bubble baths. You used to like those," he swore. It was hard to sell a new apartment to a three-year-old, especially one like Niall. Niall like constancy, and this was certainly shaking things up on him.

The little boy hummed, resting his head heavily on his dad's shoulder. Louis cupped the back of his head with his hand, a thumb stretching forward to rub his little boy's cheek.

"You can still go to sleep with daddy if you want to, yeah? The racecar bed can wait until you're ready," he swore. Louis would give Niall anything he wanted. He had already failed him once; he wouldn't do it again. The blonde's small hands gripped into his shirt.

"S'scary without you," he sniffled, and Louis's heart broke.

"I know, baby, I know."

* * *

"Zayn and Liam! Please come downstairs, we've got errands to run!" Harry called up the stairs. He waited patiently, a fond smile emerging on his lips as he heard the patter of little feet in the upstairs hall. He opened his arms as two smiling faces emerged. "There's my boys!" he cheered, catching both of his adopted sons as they leapt into a hug. "Good morning! Who is ready to get a haircut?" he asked.

Liam knotted a hand in Harry's curls. "You?" he asked. He was just seven, and already he was a smart aleck. Harry shook his head, causing Zayn to squeal as he whipped his hair in the younger boy's face.

"Nope, you! Both of you, actually. Look at you, how can you possibly see through those bangs? Are you blind?" he asked, letting them go so he could ruffle their hair. Liam smushed his fringe back out of his eyes.

"I can see fine. I  _hate_ getting my haircut," he complained. Liam had never liked scissors, and Harry couldn't blame him. If he had grown up with Liam's first set of parents, Harry would be terrified of anything even vaguely sharp. He planted a kiss to his boy's cheek.

"Don't worry. I'll be there the whole time, and I've kept you safe so far, yeah?" he asked. Liam just grumbled and stalked off to get his shoes, and Harry turned his attention to Zayn. "Hey, buddy. How you doing?" he asked the five-year-old.

Zayn just puffed his cheeks out and placed a hand on Harry's mouth.

"Not talking again today, huh?" Harry's lips moved against Zayn's fingers. "Well I hope you speak up soon! I'm going to miss hearing your voice!"

As much as Harry hated it when Zayn chose not to speak, he was pretty used to it by now. Zayn was selectively mute and shyer than any kindergartner Harry had ever met. It could be troublesome. Zayn wasn't learning like the other kids in school, and it was hard for Harry to be a parent to him when he didn't say what he wanted or needed. However, it was Zayn's problems that lead Harry to adopt him in the first place.

Harry hadn't waited when it came to getting kids. Having grown up in foster care, he had been determined to start helping young kids in similar situations as soon as he could. Sure, Harry didn't have a partner, but it didn't take two parents to make a family.

And his boys needed him.

When Harry had gotten Liam, there were still long, half-healed scabs on his body where his parents had cut into him. He still had scars where stitches hadn't been enough to fully heal his wounds, and Harry's heart ached for him every day. He was so glad that Liam could have a happy home with him and not worry about getting hurt again.

Zayn's story was a bit more vague. His social worker had taken him from his parents on the grounds of neglect, and Harry had instantly recognized Zayn has emaciated when he came to him as a scrawny three-year-old. He needed a home, too, and Harry was more than happy to give that to him.

It had been two years since Harry had last adopted and his family still didn't seem complete, but something in his heart was telling him to wait. It was like… he knew someone big would come into his life –someone who needed him- he just had to be patient.

"Dad, can we just go now? I wanna get this over with," Liam begged from the doorway. He was all bundled up already, and the sight sent Harry spurring into action.

"Yes! Help your brother tie his shoes, and I'll grab his scarf and the keys," he replied, scurrying off to gather a few last minute odds and ends. He grabbed Zayn's hand when he made his way back to the foyer. "Everybody ready? Yes? Okay, how about we get some cider doughnuts on the way, yeah?" he asked. Both of his boys quickly became excited, and Harry smiled.

It was good to be a dad.

* * *

Louis let out a puff of air as he tried to cook dinner with a clingy three-year-old in his hands. "Niall, would you be a peach and let daddy put you down for a minute? I've got to drain the noodles," he explained. The preschooler whined, and Louis sighed. "I know you don't like being left alone, but it's just me and you home right now, and I'll be right here, I promise," he swore.

Niall just looked up at him with his big, blue eyes, and Louis bit his lip. This was so hard. It was so hard taking care of Niall. He was just so needy, and so clingy, and so dependent. He couldn't do anything alone. Louis understood why, but it was exhausting, especially when Louis had to try so hard to keep up a happy front for him.

Louis felt like crying all the time, but he couldn't do that in front of Niall.

"Honey, I'm gonna have to put you in your highchair. It's not safe for daddy to lift a pot of boiling water with just one hand," he told him, setting his son in his seat.

Niall didn't exactly need a high chair anymore, but Louis needed to be able to lock him in one. The second he put Niall down, he was screaming and clawing his way up Louis's pant leg to be picked up again. Today was no exception, and Niall immediately began thrashing around as Louis clipped him in his chair.

"No, daddy,  _no,_ " Niall begged, pulling at his harness. Louis kissed the top of his little boy's head as he locked on the high chair's plastic counter top.

"It'll just be a second, lovie," he promised. It killed him to walk away from his son when he was crying like this, but he couldn't hold Niall every second of the day. It had nearly been half a year since Niall had last seen Jace; he was nearly four-years-old. Louis had thought he would get over all of his clinginess; he had thought it would be a phase. But Niall still seemed terrified of everyone and everything, and Louis had no idea what to do.

He strained the pasta and quickly stirred some butter and bite-sized pieces of broccoli into the bowties for Niall and himself. He placed a plastic bowl on Niall's high chair tray, and he put a china dish down for himself. Louis couldn't eat listening to Niall's screams though. They weren't the cries of a kid just looking for extra attention; Niall was legitimately terrified to be left on his own. He was scared.

Eventually, Louis picked Niall out of his high chair and sat him in the lap for the rest of dinner. Niall needed to eat, he was already so small, and he couldn't do that if he was crying. Louis needed to eat, too.

"Niall, we're going to see a doctor for you," Louis decided in the moment. Niall just looked up at him again with those big, blue eyes.

"Come?" he asked, tear stained cheeks still shiny as he lifted his tiny fork and struggled to eat. Louis nodded.

"I'll come. I'll take you, Niall. We'll figure this out together, yeah?" he asked. Niall didn't reply, just kept eating his noodles, leaving all his vegetables in the bowl. Louis smiled despite how stressed he was. "All right, come on, you need to eat your greens, peanut. Open up," he said, snagging a piece of broccoli on his fork and holding it out for Niall. The little blonde's face said it all as he forced himself back into Louis, trying to avoid the vegetable. Louis laughed. Sometimes Niall was the only thing that made him happy.

* * *

Liam made a shrill, angry noise as he sat on the steps. His knees were up by his ears, and his hands were threaded through his newly cut hair. Harry gently tried to pry his fingers away before he pulled fistfuls of hair out, but Liam wasn't having it. He just squirmed away. "I don't  _wanna_ see Dr. Newsome again. I wanna stay  _here_. Zayn doesn't have to go, you don't have to go, why does it have to be just  _me?!"_ he yelled.

Harry huffed out a sigh. "Liam, Zayn does have to go, it's just that his appointment is on Wednesday, not today. And I don't have to go because my parents didn't hurt me like yours did," he explained gently.

Liam's abuse wasn't exactly a taboo subject in the Style's household. Harry was always very delicate when he approached the topic –there were certain things that should and shouldn't be said- but it was important for Liam to understand that the things he faced when he was young weren't right or normal. That wasn't going to happen to Liam again. Those things shouldn't have happened to Liam in the first place. It wasn't okay, it wasn't how people should be treated, and now Liam had to work on moving past those things.

But they were still struggling with it all, and sometimes Liam had meltdowns. "No, no, no, I  _hate him_. I don't want to  _talk about it_ ," he cried. Suddenly, tears were streaming down Liam's cheeks, and Harry tsked. He pulled the seven-year-old into his lap.

"Liam, I know it's a very difficult subject for you. And I know you don't like thinking about it, and I know you were very young when it happened and a lot of it feels like it doesn't matter, but… but it does, okay? You feel and act differently than a lot of other boys your age, and it's important that we make you happy, okay? I wanna make you happy. And so does Dr. Newsome, he's going to help you get there, yeah?" Harry asked, trying to reason with Liam.

Of course, there is no such thing as reasoning with anyone mid-meltdown, least of all children, and Liam merely started to hyperventilate. His nails scratched across his scalp. "I don't  _know_  what happened. I don't know what happened, I don't know, I don't remember, I don't remember, I don't remember, I don't even  _want to_ ,  _I don't want to, I don't want to, I don't want to_ ," he wheezed. The tears weren't stopping, and Harry hummed, pulling Liam closer to him. He carefully pulled his hands away from his face so he'd stop hurting himself and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

"It's okay, Liam. Let's just calm down, okay? Breathe in… breathe out… breathe in… breathe out," he paced, trying to help his son get air in. Harry rubbed his hand rhythmically up and down Liam's back, moving up when he wanted him to breathe in and down when he thought he should breathe out. "It's okay, Liam, you're okay. Just in… and out… In… and out," he repeated.

By the time Liam relaxed, they were already running late. Harry called Liam's therapist and fortunately got Liam a later time slot after explaining the situation. He stuck his phone in his back pocket, and his oldest son cleared his throat. "What did he say?" he asked, sounding very young and very scared. Harry kissed his forehead.

"We're gonna have your appointment a little later than usual so you can have a break before Dr. Newsome talks to you about why you were crying like that," he replied. Liam made a disgruntled noise, and Harry continued to rub his back. "Don't worry about it. Just relax, buddy. Do you wanna watch a show? We can watch a show up in my bed," he offered, glancing up the staircase to catch sight of Zayn peeking out around the banister. "I'm sure your brother would like to join us, too."

Liam sniffled. "Full House?" he asked, and Harry smiled.

"Liam, sweetie, we can watch all the Houses you want. Full, empty, somewhere in the middle… the choice is yours," he offered. Liam quirked a smile. It was good enough for now.

* * *

"Excuse me, what do you mean  _double booked_? I've had this appointment set up for two weeks, my son needs this," Louis nearly shouted, cradling Niall to his chest in case the noise disturbed him. Usually, Niall was pretty calm –at least, when Louis was holding him, that is- but sometimes it was as if the slightest things set him off.

The young receptionist looked up at him, terrified. "I'm so sorry, sir. It just seems that there was a bit of a schedule mishap today, one of our senior patrons-"

"Seniority?! Are you kidding me?! This is a  _children's clinic_. It's about who needs help, not who has  _been here longest_. If it was about seniority, then you'd just have old people running around this place, no  _kid_  would ever get the opportunity!" he replied, furious. The girl all but shrunk in her seat.

"I think you'd find that all the kids who come to Dr. Newsome need help," she said meekly. The look Louis shot her was enough to send her into a tizzy. She straightened up and started fussing with the things on her desk, desperately trying to put everything back in order. "Right, well, maybe we can work out an agreement with you and the doctor's other client. He should be here any minute… Oh! There he is! Mr. Styles, please come over!" she chirped. Louis could see the relief in her eyes. Finally, someone who could help her fix things.

Louis turned around to look at this so-called "Mr. Styles", and he was pleasantly surprised. Lou had a thing for guys with long hair, and to have one so handsome and so close… Maybe he didn't mind that the asshole had taken his meeting with the doctor.

"Alice, for the last time, I told you, call me Harry," he said with a smile, before his eyes widened at the secretary's state of distress. "What's going on?" he asked. Alice twisted her ponytail with both hands.

"Mr. Styles, this is Mr. Tomlinson. It appears we've double booked the hour, and Niall is having a bit of a rough go at things," she informed him. Louis's cheeks heated up in embarrassment. He could feel them getting redder, as Mr. Styles –or  _Harry_ , rather- pulled one of his sons closer to his body. It was the older one, from the looks of things.

"Oh… It's just Liam, here, was supposed to have an appointment earlier and we had to miss it due to some complications," Harry said, and Louis shyed away a little, burying his nose in his son's shoulder. He squeezed his eyes shut.

"Right," he said, uncovering his face as he gained courage. "But you missing an appointment shouldn't be my or my son's problem. Niall is just three, and nearly half of his short little life has been miserable. He deserves a chance to get some help. Some  _real_ help. Help other than me," he explained.

Harry put an arm around his oldest boy's shoulders.  _Liam's_  shoulders. "I… okay, fair enough. But Liam's had a hard day, and he needs to talk it out. He's been really working on that lately, like… discussing his emotions after getting upset, and he's been making such progress. I'd hate to see him lose the opportunity," he replied.

The door to the back office unclicked and a small girl and her mother walked out of Dr. Newsome's room. Alice made a clicking noise with her tongue. "All right, let me just skedaddle back there and see if there isn't anything the doctor and I can't do for you," she offered, rushing off.

Louis and Harry fell into an uncomfortable silence.

"Mr. Tomlinson is my father. My name is 'Louis'. Spelled with an 's' pronounced with an 'e'," he eventually said, breaking the quiet and extending a hand to Harry. The curly-haired man smiled.

"Harry," he replied, taking his hand even though he had to let go of Liam to do it. "This is Liam and Zayn," he said, nodding to each of them. "Sorry if I was a little… snappy or something about the whole 'who gets the appointment' thing just now. It's just… I'm a single dad, and it's hard figuring it all out alone. I sort of need my kids to be able to talk to someone who can help them like Dr. Newsome can," he apologized. Louis pressed his lips together, leaning back to take a look at Niall. He brushed his little boy's hair out of his face. The three-year-old looked terrified, as he often did in the presence of strange men.

"This is Niall. He's gonna be a little shy I think… But you don't have to apologize. I was probably an asshole just now. I'm a single dad, too. Recently single. Or… not recently, it was a while ago, but it was a really hard break, like really messed up. Wait, fuck, I just said ass in front of your kids. Wait, shit. Shit. Oh gosh, if I keep talking I'll just keep swearing. Interrupt me or something, put a stop to this," he begged. Little Liam was giggling to hear such crude language, and Zayn looked confused.

Harry was just amused. "I'm sure they've heard it before, with or without my knowledge," he replied, obviously not too concerned. "Though maybe try to reign it in a little. Mine are five and seven, and yours looks to be about two," he chastised gently. Louis frowned.

"Niall is actually three. He just… is stunted. Mostly emotionally, but like…"

"Emotional problems have big physical effects on kids," Harry filled in. Louis grinned thankfully. It was good to have someone who got it, even if it must be horrible to have to see your child in the same kind of position that Louis had to see Niall in.

At that moment, Alice emerged from the back room. "Good news! Dr. Newsome has no other engagements this evening, so since this is usually his last time slot, he can take one of you right now, and one of you immediately after. Would one of you mind waiting an hour for an appointment?" she asked, and both Harry and Louis shrugged.

"I feel like Niall and I can wait. If Liam has a recent and pressing issue, then it's all his," Louis offered, taking a completely different tone than previously. Mostly, he just wanted the excuse to sit and talk to Harry for a while.

"Dad, I don't even want to," Liam complained. He had seemed shy at first, but apparently he was still up for disagreeing with his father. Louis was dreading when Niall would eventually become that way. Harry hummed, rubbing his son's back.

"I know, buddy. But you have to. You getting upset like that is why you have to keep seeing the doctor, yeah? He's gonna keep helping you feel better, okay?" he asked. Liam made a pouty face, but in Louis's opinion, he looked rather resigned.

Harry walked Liam to the back office and helped his son get settled before returning to Louis. He sat down next to him on the couch Louis had claimed. Harry pulled Zayn into his lap while Niall rested mostly on Louis's chest. Louis was scared to set the blonde down to much in case he decided to start screaming.

"So is Niall yours biologically or adopted?" Harry asked, clearly trying to strike up small talk.

"Niall is half mine, half a surrogates'. Jace –my ex- and I were gonna have one with my DNA and one with his, but then he turned out to be the worst human being in the world, so now it's just Niall and I," he explained, frowning as the blonde fidgeted in his arms. The preschooler always seemed to realize when Louis was talking about his old papa, cause he could never sit still when he was. Harry nodded.

"Liam and Zayn are adopted. I just kinda… wanted them, you know?" he questioned before turning to Zayn. "I just wanted you so bad! Even though you're so quiet!" he said, tickling his son's sides. Louis smiled as the little guy laughed; though he found it odd that he didn't say one word throughout the entire exchange.

Louis thought it would be rude to ask about it.

"I want my NiNi," Louis replied, planting a kiss to his baby's forehead. "But NiNi wants daddy time a little too much, a little too often, so we're going to try to figure out how to make him a bit happier when he's not being carried," Louis explained. Niall let out a whine.

"Daddy," he demanded, pulling him close with his scrawny little arms. Louis laughed fondly, squeezing his son a bit closer. Harry quirked an eyebrow.

"I've been there, I think. Zayn didn't want to let go when I first got him. But eventually he learned how to be by himself… he just doesn't like talking while he's at it," he said. He turned back to Zayn. "You just decide not to talk some days, huh?" he asked. Zayn said nothing, naturally, so Louis decided to take Harry's word for it.

They continued to chat for a while, and all too soon, Liam was popping out of the doctor's office. He ran to Harry in an upset mess, and Harry cooed as he picked up the younger boy. Zayn looked disgruntled as he lost his spot in his dad's lap to his brother.

"Looks like someone has had a rough day," Harry crooned, hugging him tight. He looked up at Louis. "I'm glad we had a scheduling conflict. It was nice talking to someone who gets it," he explained, and Louis nodded. There weren't many single dads out there that Louis knew. And the very select few that he did know didn't have emotionally disturbed children. "Maybe let's have lunch sometime? Somewhere kid friendly? We can exchange numbers?" he asked, and Louis all but jumped up to give Harry his phone.

All too soon, the Styles family was saying goodbye to the Tomlinson family, and Louis was forced to leave Harry and his kids as he took Niall back to their first session. It was sad to see a new friend go. Louis had been alone for so long. However, he didn't have to wait long to hear from Harry again. There was a text in his inbox the second he checked his phone after Niall's appointment.

_Hiiiii. I'm free on Sunday. You?_

Even if Louis weren't free, he would be there.

* * *

"Harry? This is Louis… I'm afraid Niall and I are going to be a little late," Louis explained as soon as the phone stopped ringing. Niall was being much more finicky than usual, unfortunately interrupting Louis's plans for the day. He couldn't set the three-year-old down for more than three seconds without him bursting into tears. It was hard for Louis to get the pair of them ready to go when Niall was either resting on his hip or screeching in his playpen.

Just like his high chair, Niall didn't really need to be set in a playpen anymore. He could be put down and unsupervised without hurting himself or getting into trouble. However, sometimes Louis needed him to stay put while he got things together, so the four walls of the playpen usually came in handy.

Louis bit his lip when Harry didn't respond. He clamped the phone between his ear and his elbow as he put product in his hair, squinting into the mirror as he focused. "Hello?  _He~llo_?" he called. "Harry, are you there?"

Still, no one responded to Louis, but he could hear some background noise and the cackling of the phone's speakers as the mobile device switched hands. "Hello, this is Harry. May I ask who's speaking?" he questioned politely. Louis furrowed his brow, thoroughly confused.

"This is Louis," he repeated, not sure what the mess up was. Harry made a pleased noise over the line.

"Oh, hi, Louis! I'm sorry if you were just talking to dead air there for a second. Zayn picked up the phone. It seems as though he's talking to me today, but not anyone else," the other man explained. Things suddenly made much more sense to Louis. He smiled over the line, for once ignoring the shrill sounds of Niall crying. He did, however, wave through the bathroom door at his little boy to show him that daddy was still there.

"He's a quirky one, that Zayn," Louis said fondly. The Styles and Tomlinson families had gone on quite a few outings together. Harry had shown Louis all the good places in town to take kids: from Chuck E. Cheese to Paint A Plate. Niall hadn't participated in many of the kid-geared activities, but Louis was confident that when he was older -and a little more psychologically balanced, thanks to their weekly meetings with Dr. Newsome- Niall would be able to go off and have fun like Liam and Zayn.

"He's just the stoic, strong and silent type," Harry replied, and Louis could picture him ruffling his youngest son's hair.

"Accurate," Louis agreed, before biting his lip and casting a glance back towards Niall. He sighed before changing subjects. "Listen, I called because –if you couldn't tell with all the screaming in the background- things are not going so well here at the Tomlinson household," Louis explained, more than a little distressed. Harry hummed.

"Outings with special needs kids do not always start out smooth sailing," he answered understandingly. Louis finished fixing his hair and grabbed hold of his phone properly again. He rubbed his forehead, feeling a tension headache coming on.

"You can say that again. Niall and I might be a little late getting to dinner," he said sheepishly.

"That's fine. We're having similar issues at my house. Actually… Actually, would you want to maybe just come over? I don't think Liam is going to make it out of his bedroom for at least an hour, and while Zayn is talking a bit, he also is struggling to let go of me. Isn't that right, Zaynie? You keep crawling up me like a koala." There was giggling over the line as Harry most likely distracted himself with tickling Zayn. Louis was used to Harry switching between talking to him and talking to his kids mid-phone conversation. Louis smiled, unwelcomed feelings for Harry blossoming in his heart.

He walked over to Niall, the tears on the blonde's face slowing as he saw his daddy come towards him. "Everyone is just a little mess today," Louis cooed as he picked up his baby. He kissed Niall's nose.

Harry laughed. "Yes. But… but you'll come over?" he questioned, and Louis cuddled Niall in close to his chest for a moment, judging the little boy's mental stability. Could he last an afternoon out?

"Yeah. Text me the address, and I'll text you when we're leaving," Louis agreed, deciding that there wouldn't be too much overwhelming stimuli at Harry's house. Niall did all right in domestic environments.

"Great! See you soon!"

"See you soon!"

* * *

Harry hung up the phone and looked at Zayn very seriously. "We have some cleaning to do, mister," he informed him, and Zayn instantly started whining.

"But I didn't even  _make_  any messes, it was all Liam!" he complained. Harry smiled, biting back a laugh.

"Really? Because I'm pretty sure it was you who I saw playing with blocks and cars all morning while Liam kept locking himself up."

Liam had been having a rough time of things. He'd nicked himself on the edge of an envelope when Harry had asked him to get the mail, resulting in a nasty paper cut. Liam didn't always get upset with minor cuts and bruises, but sometimes it brought some nasty thoughts and memories to the forefront of the seven-year-old's brain. It would be scary for anyone, but especially for Liam. He still didn't understand why he felt the things he felt, and he was so young when it happened that the memories were confusing.

Liam was still working on figuring out how to talk about how he was feeling, and most of the time he avoided it like the plague. As a result, there had been a lot of slammed shut doors that morning.

Zayn, meanwhile, had been happy as a clam, if not a bit clingy. He'd been playing around Harry's feet all-day and chatting up a storm. One the days where Zayn decided to talk, he would babble away. It was nice to hear him prattle on, and Harry sometimes wondered if Zayn liked to save up all of his words and then release them all at once.

"I never play with blocks. We don't even have blocks. What blocks?" Zayn asked, trying to worm his way out of cleaning. Harry laughed.

"You always play with blocks, we have loads of them, look down and you'll see what I'm talking about," he exclaimed, kicking a orange triangle for emphasis. Zayn looked at him sheepishly. "C'mon, I'll help you, all right? Louis and Niall are coming here today, so things have to be spic and span."

"Spic and span," Zayn repeated, testing the words in his mouth.

Zayn spoke with a limited vocabulary due how many words there were that he had never practiced saying. He could understand the same amount of words that a normal five-year-old could, but saying them was a different story. He frequently liked to try out new ones, providing he was speaking that day.

"Spic and span, spic and span, spic and span," he repeated as Harry set him onto the floor and he started to dump all of his toys into their right containers. Harry helped him tidy and then went about doing dishes –Zayn sitting up on the counter and babbling away- until the doorbell rang.

Zayn fell silent.

Harry looked Zayn in the eyes before getting the door. "Remember what we're working on? On days like today, when someone asks you a question or when you need something, you have to try to talk to me, okay? If you want to whisper in my ear, that's all right. If you want to take me upstairs or into another room, that's okay, too. But let's not stop communication just because someone else is here. It's important to be able to talk to each other, right?" Harry asked.

"Right," Zayn whispered. Harry positively beamed, proud of his son for getting off to a good start. He kissed his forehead before going to fetch the door.

"Hi Harry!" Louis chirped the second Harry pulled the front door open. He had a tear stained Niall gathered up in his arms, the little blond dressed in a hat, jacket, and mittens to battle the cool, autumn air.

"Hello, Louis. When Liam comes downstairs,  _if_  he comes downstairs, I might have to pause our conversation to go have a chat with him, but otherwise I'm all yours," he promised, leading Louis and Niall into the house and taking their jackets for them. "Have you two eaten yet? Zayn and I are starved." It was seven o'clock and they still hadn't had dinner.

Louis shook his head. "We haven't eaten, but lucky for you guys, Niall and I ordered pizza. It's in the passenger seat of the car, but I couldn't hold Niall and the boxes all at once, so if you wouldn't mind….?" Louis trailed off, propping Niall up and towards Harry.

Harry's eyes widened in understanding. "Oh, um, sure," he answered, reaching out for the three-year-old. He gathered him into his arms, trying to keep him close and keep him calm. For the moment, Niall seemed happy, if not a bit confused.

"Thanks!" Louis replied, stretching his arms out. "I'll be right back. I got Hawaiian for you, Zaynie! Be excited!" he cheered, redirecting his attention towards the five-year-old at Harry's feet. Zayn's eyes widened and a smile lit up his face. He tugged at his dad's pant leg, jumping up and down in excitement. Niall, meanwhile, made a whining noise as he realized Louis was leaving. "It'll just be one second, bub," Louis promised before ducking out the door.

Niall immediately started  _screaming_.

"Daddy!  _Daddy, no!_ No, no, no,  _no! No!"_ he screeched, thrashing in Harry's arms. It was all he could do to keep the toddler from falling to the floor. He struggled to keep hold of Niall, kissing through the other boy's hair as he broke down.

"Niall, honey, shhh. Sh, sh, sh, it's okay. It's all right, Daddy is coming right back. He's not leaving. It's okay, sweetheart, shhh," he begged. Zayn was looking up at him fearfully, and Harry didn't think he looked exceptionally reassuring. He was too freaked out himself. He knew Niall had separation anxiety; he knew he was special needs. But apparently, he didn't understand the extent of the problem.

" _Daddy_ ," Niall wailed brokenly, his tiny body wracking against Harry's. The three-year-old was terrified.

And it was sad because kids weren't born to be like this. Sweet little boys like Niall don't just wake up one morning and refuse to leave their dad's side. Something -or more like some _one_ \- had to make them this way, and whatever it was, it must have been awful, what with the way Niall was screaming.

The three-year-old's screeching dissolved into relieved sobbing as Louis entered the door. He practically kicked himself out of Harry's arms to jump into Louis's. Harry watched, frozen half due to shock and half due to stress, as Lou comforted his son, setting the pizzas down on the foyer table. He only reanimated when a nervous Zayn pulled at his pant leg, looking confused with his arms up to be held.

Harry quickly picked him up and planted a kiss to Zayn's cheek. "Louis…" he trailed off, not sure what to make of things. Louis looked at him with the face of a flustered parent. "Louis, he was screaming bloody murder," he all but gasped, cradling Zayn to his chest. As confusing as the whole encounter had been for Harry, he was sure it must be worse for a kid as sheltered as his Zayn was.

"Yeah, that happens," Louis replied, kissing his baby's cheeks and forehead as he slowly started to settle down. He fixed Niall's hat down over his ears.

"All the time?" Harry questioned, alarmed. Louis nodded. "Well… well… is he okay? What… what  _happened?_ "

Louis eyed Zayn and pressed his lips together. "I don't think now is a good time to talk about it," he replied, burying his nose in Niall's hair. The way Louis was curled into him… it was like Louis was trying to find comfort in his son instead of the other way around.

Harry opened his mouth to… to something. To send Zayn to his room, to reassure Louis, to cheer Niall up, but he was sorrowfully interrupted when Liam's voice emerged from the top of the staircase.

"Dad?" Liam asked, biting his lip and practically hiding behind the bannister. Harry made a bit of a cooing noise as he took in Liam's red nose and puffy eyes. It seemed like everyone was having a hard time of things today.

"Oh, Liam, sweetie. Hello, I missed you so badly. I'll be right there, love," he promised. He turned back to Louis. Their conversation about Niall would just have to wait another day. "I'll be right back. Maybe you can give Zayn and Ni dinner?" Harry asked, putting Zayn on the ground.

"Sure thing," Louis answered, reaching out a hand for Zayn to take. The five-year-old quickly pulled Louis off to the kitchen, an adorable, hungry look on his face. Harry's heart settled as most of his boys seemed to be taken care of. Now all that was left was Liam.

"All right, Li-Li. Let's go have a chat."

* * *

Louis smiled at Niall as his little boy started pulling at the grass. The blonde giggled adorably as it came up in tufts in his hands, and Louis couldn't help but plant a kiss to the boy's forehead. He was all bundled up -cute little woolen mittens and matching beanie in place- but despite how many layers he was wearing, he still seemed to be pretty happy to play at the park.

They were all at the playground for the day, both the Tomlinson and the Styles family. It had stopped raining for once, and Harry had brought a waterproof picnic blanket to lay down so the parents could sit and watch the kids play. Niall hadn't made it past the hem of the tarp, he was so dependant on Louis, but everyone seemed to be having a good time.

"Drink it in, Nialler. This might be the last time we see the sun until Spring!" he announced, gesturing to the cloudless sky. Niall beamed.

"Warm!" he exclaimed, flapping his arms up and down a bit, his big puffy sleeves making it impossible for the three-year-old to lower them all the way to his sides. Harry made a crooning noise from the other side of Louis, obviously finding Niall adorable.

"Yes, NiNi! It's such a nice day!" Harry replied, taking his eyes off of his kids for a moment to breathe in the air. Without realizing, Louis took the opportunity to admire Harry's features. He was so nice to look at, and it was embarrassing how often Louis caught himself staring. He didn't know what Harry's intentions were when it came to all of these family outings, and Louis wasn't looking for a new relationship anytime soon. Not after what happened with Jace. He shouldn't look at Harry in any way outside of friendship.

"Yes," Niall agreed happily. The little blond tended to have a lot more to say lately, albeit short and clipped per usual. He ripped out another clump of grass. "For you, daddy!" he chirped. Louis took the handful of lawn clippings carefully.

"Thank you, peanut, I'll take good care of these," he promised, settling the pile on the corner of the blanket, much to Niall's delight. The little boy started excitingly tearing out grass and collecting it. Louis let him play, amiably chatting with Harry until an oversized winter jacket barreled into the other man's chest. Black hair poked out from under the hood, and Louis was able to identify the coat as Zayn's. "Looks like you're needed," he smiled.

"What's up, love?" Harry asked, putting his and Louis's conversation on hold. Zayn fidgeted awkwardly in Harry's lap, eying Louis carefully before leaning in to whisper in his dad's ear. Harry nodded immediately in response, standing up. "Right. Louis? We're off to find the nearest bathroom," he explained, taking hold of his son's hand. "Will you watch Liam?"

"No problem," Louis replied, waving Harry off. As the pair strolled away, Louis could hear Harry praising Zayn for managing to communicate with him despite the presence of other people. Meanwhile, Liam jumped off the swing he was on and rushed over to Louis.

"Where is my dad going?" he asked. He looked a little confused and a little lost. Louis understood. It must be hard for Liam to feel so stressed and scared all of the time due to a childhood he didn't remember or understand, and it must be much harder for him to do it all without Harry nearby.

Louis grinned reassuringly at him. "He's taking Zayn to the loo. Wanna do something together until they get back?" he asked hopefully. When Niall was separated from Louis, there was nothing he wouldn't do to get near to him again. Fortunately, Liam didn't appear to be cut from the same cloth.

"Um, yeah, okay…" he replied, uncertain but coping better than Louis expected. Liam squirmed in place for a second. "... Sometimes my dad holds my feet so I can do the monkey bars," he suggested hopefully. Louis immediately stood up.

"Sure, thing!" he replied, turning towards Niall for a second. "Lovie, I'm gonna go play with Liam. You can come too, if you want," he offered, and of  _course_ , Niall took him up on it. The trio made their way over the the monkey bars.

Liam jumped up on the play set, but he was still too short to reach. "Would you…?" he trailed off, obviously nervous about asking for help. Harry had explained it before.

It all had to do with trust. It was hard for Liam to put the things that were important to him in the hands of other people, particularly adults. In this case, making it across the monkey bars safely was what mattered most to Liam.

"Of course! Ready, jump!" he instructed, hoisting Liam up high enough to grab ahold of the first bar. It was hard not to trample Niall in the process, who was too busy interesting himself in the mulch on the ground to pay much attention to Louis. The little boy was wrists deep in woodchips.

Liam, meanwhile, seemed alarmed to be up so high. "Don't let go," he demanded, holding onto the first rung in an iron grip. Louis smiled, glad that the seven-year-old was trusting him enough to let him help with such a big task.

"I would never let you go, Liam," he promised, hands around Liam's torso, but he wasn't holding on. Liam had the strength, that much was clear, he just needed the security. "Now you remember how to get going, right? One hand after the other."

Liam nodded a bit, staring up at the bars in fear. They were spread pretty far apart, but Louis knew his arms were long enough to make the reach.

It was absolutely adorable to watch courage and determination sweep over Liam's features as he steeled himself to make the stretch. He swung his body a bit, oblivious to how little support Louis was giving him, and released a hand. He snagged the next rung out of mid-air.

"Great job, Li! Keep going!" Louis encouraged him, cheering for each move he made and supporting Liam when he was close to losing his grip or falling down. The seven-year-old made it to the end of the monkey bars in no time, a round of applause coming from behind both Louis and Liam as he finished.

"Liam! You did it, you made it the whole way across!" Harry cheered, stretching his arms out for Liam so his son could rush in for a hug. Apparently, Harry and Zayn had come back from the bathroom just in time to see Liam finish up the monkey bars. Louis dusted off his hands and picked Niall up out of the mulch, now thinking about splinters with his attention off of Liam.

"I think this calls for celebration," Louis decided as he checked his watch. They had been at the park for hours. All of the kids were flushed and tuckered out. It was time to move on. "Harry, what do you think about getting some I-C-E-C-R-E-A-M?" he spelled.

Liam's eyes widened as he put together the letters. "Say yes!" he chirped, jumping up and down. As a second grader, Liam was just learning how to put together larger words. Apparently, 'ice cream' was a phrase he knew.

Harry grinned down at his son. "I think we can go, providing Niall and Zayn are okay with it. Zayn, love, would you like some ice cream?" he questioned.

Zayn, naturally, didn't speak, but his face did break out into a smile, which was confirmation enough. Niall also perked up a bit at the potential snack and he kicked his legs a bit in Louis's arms. "Yum!" he announced, squeezing onto Louis a little tighter.

Harry bit his lip, grabbing Liam's hand. "It looks like we have no choice! Let's go get our things, boys, and then we'll go to Maggie Moos!"

Louis followed behind Harry as he lead his kids over to the blanket they'd been resting on before and then to the car. He really was a great dad. The way he kept up with the emotional needs of two little boys…? It was inspiring. Harry managed to keep both Zayn and Liam smiling despite the shitty hand they'd been dealt in life. Louis only hoped he could help Niall in the same way.

Warm feelings splayed out through Louis's stomach as he buckled Niall into his carseat. He couldn't help but feel good about Harry.

Louis climbed into the driver's seat and stuck the keys in the ignition, looking up only to catch Harry's eye in the next car over. The curly-haired man lifted a hand in a wave over his steering wheel, giving him a smile before pulling out of his parking space. Louis faltered while adjusting the gear shift, too caught up in thinking about Harry's dimples.

As Louis backed out of his space and followed the Styles's car to the ice cream parlor, a pleasant yet unsettling feeling swept through Louis. He was head over heels for Harry Styles, and there was no looking back now.

* * *

Harry was used to being woken up in the night.

In fact, Harry couldn't remember his last full night of sleep. Both Zayn and Liam frequently got nightmares, and both were scared of being left alone in their rooms. Bedtime was hard for Harry to pull off, and both he and his sons tried to avoid it to the best of their ability. But kids needed sleep, so Harry managed to get them into bed at a reasonable hour every night, only for one of them to force themselves into Harry's bed or wake up crying in the middle of the night.

So yeah, Harry was used to being woken up by crying kids. However, he  _wasn't_  used to getting pulled out of sleep by his phone going off.

It wasn't too late. It wasn't even midnight, yet, but Harry tended to go to sleep early now that he had kids. He opened bleary eyes to find his phone lit up and vibrating on his bedside table. It's loud ringing filled the room, making it impossible to sleep, and Harry groaned before throwing an arm out to snag the device.

"Hello?" he mumbled half into the receiver, half into the pillow as he answered the call. There was sniffling on the other side of the line with muted screaming in the background.

"H-Harry?"

Harry shot straight up in bed. "Louis? Louis? Are you okay? What's wrong?" he asked, officially awake. He could hear in the other man's voice that he was crying. Harry didn't know Louis to cry. He knew him to make jokes, laugh, and smile whenever Harry looked at him. This was strange; this was new.

And Harry was worried.

"I… It's not me, really, it's just… it's just…" Louis made a bit of a keening noise over the line. "I'm supposed to get Niall to sleep by himself? That's what Dr. Newsome says, anyways, and he's not… I mean… I can't… I'm…" Louis struggled for the right thing to say, and Harry waited patiently. "... It's not going well," he finished lamely. Harry nodded even though Louis couldn't see him.

"Louis…" he replied, not sure how to help or what to do

"I just… I know he's not happy, you know? And all this… clinging to me isn't really helping him, even if it makes him feel a little more safe. But I don't… I don't… I don't…" Louis broke off for a second, crying and upset. "I don't want to see him like this. I hate seeing him so scared, especially when it's my fault, it's… it's too much," he explained. Harry's heart broke for him.

"Louis, I'm coming over, yeah? Just hold on, let me get the boys in the car, and we'll be there."

Louis tried to argue for a minute, but Harry wouldn't have it. He told Louis he was coming and that was that. When he managed to hang up the phone, a distressed but slightly relieved Louis finally giving in, Harry jumped into action. He managed to get Zayn into his booster seat without ever waking him up; however, Liam stirred when Louis carried him down to the car.

"Where we goin'?" he asked, dazed and confused. Harry shushed him, rubbing his back a bit.

"We're going to Louis's house. Niall is having a hard time getting to sleep so I'm going to help. You can sleep on the couch," he promised, managing to sit Liam in his own booster. He buckled the tired boy in -knowing the seven-year-old was too sleepy to do it himself- and kissed his forehead. "Just go to bed, peanut."

Liam nodded just barely before conking out again. Harry, meanwhile, climbed into the driver's seat and pulled out of the driveway.

It took twenty agonizing minutes to get to Louis's, but Harry managed to keep calm the entire time. He knocked on Louis's door when he arrived. The other man opened up almost immediately, tears dripping down his cheeks. Harry shifted a sleeping Zayn up a little higher in his arms. "Got a spot I can put this one?" he asked.

Louis nodded, leading him into the little flat. Harry had never been in Louis's apartment before. It was small. There was a desk, sofa, and playpen in the living room, and a tiny kitchen right off of it. Harry laid Zayn down on the couch.

"Won't he wake up?" Louis asked, wincing as Niall let out a particularly shrill shriek. Harry shook his head.

"The only thing that can wake Zayn up is Zayn. Hence, why he goes to P.M. kindergarten instead of A.M.," he explained, kissing his son's forehead. "I'm gonna go get Liam. He stirs easier, but I already told him what's going on."

Harry left to pick Liam up and out of the car. He locked up his minivan and climbed the stairs up to Louis's second floor apartment. He laid Liam down head to toe with Zayn on the couch, only for Louis to throw a blanket over the two boys.

Harry's chest constricted just looking at Louis. He put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey... Let's go out of earshot, yeah?" he asked, leading Louis towards the kitchen. He eyed Liam carefully. He didn't want his son to wake up and hear their conversation. "Maybe talk quietly, okay? Little mugs have big handles."

Louis nodded. He squeezed his eyes shut for a second before letting go of a shaky breath. "This is the eighth time I've tried to get him to sleep on his own in two weeks. I can't... I can't listen to him cry like this."

Harry bit his lip. "So... So Niall sleeps with you every night? Like in your bed?" he questioned. Louis shook his head in affirmation. "Louis... That isn't healthy."

"I know it's not healthy," Louis snapped, before a guilty expression swept over his face. "Sorry... Sorry, it's just... I've already failed Niall once. I let him... Someone... Someone hurt him, as you might have figured. Under my own roof," he explained, wringing his hands together. "I'm doing my best, it's just... not working." Louis looked so ashamed, it was heartbreaking.

Harry took Louis's hands in his own. "What... What happened to him ?" Harry asked gently. Louis looked up at him with red eyes.

"He... Um, he… he..." Louis trailed off, hyperventilating. Obviously whatever happened to Niall, it was hard for his dad to talk about.

Harry reached out awkwardly, running a comforting hand up and down Louis's arm. He didn't know how close he was allowed to get. He didn't know how Louis felt about him or if he would want him near. But Harry was concerned -for both halves of the Tomlinson family- and he wanted to see to it that things turned out okay for them. "He what?" he goaded, dying for answers even if he knew they'd be hard to hear.

Louis made a squeaking noise before answering. "He was molested," he choked out. "I don't... I don't know how many times." Louis body shook as he held back sobs. Harry quickly gathered him up into his arms, forgetting about his plans to keep his distance.

"Oh, love..." he murmured. If Louis wasn't crying, Harry would be in tears himself. But as it was, he needed to keep it together and comfort the little boy's father. "Look. First things first, let's help him fall asleep on his own, yeah? Let's just get him to bed," he suggested after Louis seemed to settle a bit.

Louis let out a huff of air and pulled himself together. He wordlessly lead Harry down a short little hallway to Niall's bedroom. There was a baby gate up to keep the three-year-old in his room, which was probably for the best because Niall clearly wanted out. He was sitting by the door with his fingers knotted up in the holes of the gate, snot and tears smeared across his face.

"Can I pick him up?" Louis asked uncertainly. Harry nodded, and Louis bent over to lift the toddler.

It was only when Louis had Niall in his arms and the blond had calmed that Harry realized just how  _loud_ it had been. He couldn't imagine having to sit and listen to that kind of crying all night. There was no escaping that kind of noise.

"It's okay, Niall, it's okay," Louis promised, but his voice was high and wavering. Niall didn't seem to feel reassured. Harry reached out and rubbed the little boy's back, thankful that Zayn had gone through a similar period so that he could help.

"Niall, honey. Can you look at me?" he inquired. Niall stuck his fingers in his mouth but complied. "Sweetheart, you need to go to sleep in your bed tonight, okay?"

Niall whimpered.

"I know it's scary, but your dad is gonna be in the next room, all right?" Niall looked away from Harry to look at his dad. Harry placed a nonthreatening hand on his arm to get the toddler's attention again. "Listen, Niall. Daddy won't stop protecting you just because you are in another room. If you need him when you wake up, he'll come running, all right? But your daddy and I need you to fall asleep by yourself. It's important to go to bed in your own room, and when you wake up, you can spend all the time with your daddy that you want."

Niall sat up in Louis arms. He looked unhappy and scared, but he also looked exhausted. Louis stepped over the babygate and laid Niall down on his bed, sitting right at the top where the toddler rails didn't stretch up to. "Tired," Niall complained around his fingers, and Louis held onto his free hand.

"It's very late, bub. You should sleep."

"No, daddy," Niall whined. Harry stepped into the room, ready to intervene if he had to.

Louis hummed, kissing his son's cheek. "Yes, baby. You heard what Harry said. You don't have to be afraid. I'm gonna be just across the hall," he promised.

"Tired," Niall wailed a bit louder. He looked like he was melting into his sheets.

"Go to sleep, honey. It makes daddy want to cry to see you so exhausted and sad. Go to bed, we can be happy together tomorrow morning."

"Tomorrow morning?"

"Yes, baby." Harry could hear the hope in Louis's voice. Niall was right on the edge of caving.

"Okay," Niall agreed. Louis beamed in relief, carding his fingers through his son's hair. They said their goodnights, and Harry watched as they gave each other hugs and kisses, warmth spreading through his chest for Louis and his broken little boy.

Louis tiptoed out of the room, closing the door behind him.

"He's got your eyes," Harry smiled, taking Louis's hand. The older man took a deep breath, scrubbing old tear tracks away.

"Please don't go home. Please stay," he begged, and Harry squeezed his hand.

"I wouldn't dream of leaving," he promised.

Louis let Harry occupy the other side of his bed. The cinnamon haired boy was quick to fall asleep, but Harry was a little restless.

He had been waiting. Waiting for someone who needed him, waiting to round out his family... Here with his boys, Louis, and Niall? His life finally felt whole.

* * *

Louis woke up to the sound of his son crying. "That would be Niall," Louis groaned, peeling himself off the mattress. He pattered into the toddler's room and smiled when Niall went from crying to excited in three milliseconds. He held his arms out for a hug. "Is someone happy to see daddy?" he asked, and Niall jumped off his bed and into Louis's awaiting embrace.

"Yes!" he chirped, snuggling into his dad's chest. Louis grinned, pressing a few kisses through Niall's cute fringe.

"I'm happy to see you too, bug. I'm so proud of you for sleeping all on your own last night!" he praised. Niall perked up a little. "You did such a good job, Nialler."

"M'good!" he repeated. Louis just gave Niall's nose a peck in response, too tired for much talking, and carried him back into the master bedroom, only to find his bed occupied by not just Harry, but Liam as well.

"We're all waking up at the same time, it seems," Harry announced as Louis walked in. Lou smiled as he crawled back under the covers, ruffling Liam's hair on his way to getting snuggled in.

"We are. Good morning, Liam," Louis greeted him. "I'm sorry if you had a hard time sleeping with all the chaos last night," he apologized. He felt bad for disrupting the Styles family so much, but he had needed Harry so badly, there was no way around it. Liam shrugged.

"It's okay. Daddy says we can have pancakes," he explained, bouncing on his heels so the whole bed started shaking.

Harry threw Louis a sheepish look. "As long as you have the stuff, that is. I can make them for everyone, and then clean up. Do you… do you mind?" he questioned.

It took Louis a second to answer, he was so swept up in Harry's bedhead and the fact that there were people in his house who weren't just Niall. Louis worked at home as a French to English translator, so his usual human interaction included just Niall and maybe a few phone calls. "Um… it's totally fine. I have a contract that needs to be translated by Monday, but… I've still got time," he promised, it being a lazy Saturday morning.

Harry looked elated, and Liam appeared to feel just the same. "Great! I'll get up and start working on that right now," he promised, throwing back the covers. Liam followed his dad out of the room with no small amount of pep in his step.

Louis laughed as he heard pots and pans clash in the kitchen. He smiled down at Niall who was resting on his chest. It had been hard to make Niall sleep on his own last night, and Louis hadn't wanted to be by himself either. But he knew this was a good step towards Niall hopefully being independent. Holding him back would only further stunt his growth.

"It's nice that Harry came over, isn't it?" Louis asked, and Niall made an annoyed noise in his arms, already asleep again. Lou just chuckled at his sleepy son trailed his fingers up and down the little boy's back. Things were hard, but they were getting easier.

* * *

Harry paled as he listened to his voicemail. He had just missed a call from Zayn and Liam's elementary school, and per usual, the school's secretary had phoned with bad news. He shut his laptop and stood up from the table. "Excuse me, gentlemen, I have to go pick up my five-year-old from kindergarten," he explained, collecting his things and darting out the door.

Harry worked as a graphic designer. His job allowed him to do most of his work from home, but he frequently had to take meetings with clients and collaborate with other artists during his boys' class schedule. It wasn't uncommon, however, for problems to arise and for Harry to have to leave early to take care of one of his sons.

Fortunately, the school wasn't very far away. When Harry arrived, the secretary helped him to sign in immediately and led him to Zayn's classroom, unable to answer any of his questions as to why the school had to call him in.

The second the classroom door opened, Harry understood.

"Oh, Zayn, lovie," he cooed, rushing over to his son and gently picking him up off the floor. Zayn had just been on the ground crying. Tears were spilling down his cheeks as he struggled to breathe. Meanwhile his teacher, Mrs. Hiscock, was crouched at his side. "He's unresponsive?" Harry asked, already knowing the answer.

Mrs. Hiscock replied in a high, nervous voice. "He hasn't said a word all year, but now he won't even look me in the eye. I don't know what's upsetting him. He wouldn't get off the ground." It was obvious she was flustered. Harry understood. Zayn wasn't like other five-year-olds. He couldn't vocalize what was upsetting him, and Zayn typically became scarily upset frighteningly quickly.

"Okay," Harry replied, a little preoccupied with his sobbing son. "Um… where are the other kids?" he questioned. He had just noticed the classroom was empty.

"I sent them outside to share recess with the fourth graders. I thought… I thought Zayn could use some privacy," she explained, eyes wide. Harry couldn't help but feel rather guilty. Zayn was a difficult kid to manage. He couldn't communicate, so it was hard to take care of him, especially when he had episodes like this.

Harry kissed his son's temple. "Thank you so much, that was good of you. I'll take it from here," he promised. Mrs. Hiscock nodded, face flushed and concerned, but she seemed content to put Zayn in his father's care.

Harry carried the boy out of the room and found a relatively quiet bench in one of the school hallways to sit on. He sheltered the abnormally small five-year-old from the other kindergartners' stares as they filtered in from recess before propping Zayn up and thumbing away his tears.

"Peanut, do you wanna tell daddy what's wrong?" he asked. Zayn didn't meet his eyes, just continued to hiccup with sobs.

Harry tsked and shrugged off his jacket. He swiftly swaddled Zayn up in it before cradling him to his chest, planting kiss after kiss through his hair. Dr. Newsome had explained that Zayn's unresponsive episodes were due to a number of factors: feeling unsafe, not understanding his emotions, and feeling too overwhelmed to try and communicate. As his father, it was Harry's job to make him feel as safe and protected as possible so that he could relax and try to explain what was upsetting him.

"You're okay, Zayn. I promise. I'm here. I love you. I'm not going anywhere, I'm sticking right with you, okay buddy? We're in this together," he promised, trying to make himself as available to Zayn as possible.

"A _lone_ ," Zayn wailed into his chest. Harry was surprised to hear him speak again so soon. He hummed in acknowledgement, finger combing Zayn's hair back into place. It was more messed up than usual.

"What do you mean by that, sweetheart?" he asked as calmly as possible. Harry had to do everything he could to make Zayn feel safe enough to speak and process his emotions.

"Alone at school," Zayn cried, tiny hands fisting into his dad's shirt. It was times like these when Harry remembered just how stunted Zayn's growth was, and how important it was that Harry kept him well nourished and tended to so that he could grow up big and strong. "Alone, 'cept for you… you and Li-Li," he continued. It was fragmented, but Harry managed to put it together.

"You're sad about having trouble making school friends, you mean?" he asked. Harry had gotten many phone calls about how difficult it was for Zayn to be social at school. He was shy, and the other kids thought he was weird for not talking. This wouldn't be the first time Zayn got upset about all of the other kids having buddies except for him.

Zayn nodded into Harry's v-neck. "School… scary, and… and no," he choked out, words broken and mismatched. Harry frowned, understanding.

"I know it's hard for you to be in your classroom, Zayn. But we've talked about this. Mrs. Hiscock wants to take care of you, just like I do. And its important for you to be with kids your age. You need to work to try to stop being scared around other people so that you can make friends."

"Other things bad, too," Zayn replied. Harry's blood ran cold.

"What other things are bad?" he asked. He knew Harry was having a hard time coping with school. He had questioned him many times about some of the behaviors Mrs. Hiscock had picked up on, but Zayn never seemed to have answers. Finally, he was opening up about what other things were upsetting him. Now Harry had to decide if he really wanted to hear them. It was hard to hear that your son is struggling, and Harry was worried that Zayn's problems wouldn't be fixable.

"S'bright, loud, smelly… see too much, taste too much… hear way, way too much, nngh," Zayn answered, freeing an arm to hit his own head in frustration. Harry's hand flew up instinctively to catch Zayn's fist before it crashed into his skull again.

"Zayn, sweetheart, relax," he said.

"No, no, no,  _no_ ," Zayn screeched, getting loud fairly suddenly. Harry wasn't used to this kind of behavior from Zayn. Liam was typically the one to get angry and frustrated.

"Okay, okay, baby. There's no need to shout. You're with daddy now; I'm here, I'm listening," he promised, trying to reassure his little boy. "I need you to talk to me, okay? Dr. Newsome says some kids who don't talk like you have trouble with seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting, and smelling. Do those things make you nervous?" he asked, feeling quite anxious himself. A lot of kids with Selective Mutism also had Sensory Integration Dysfunction symptoms. Harry didn't want Zayn to struggle with heightened senses, but that was looking to be the case.

Zayn looked Harry in the eye, finally, before bursting into tears. "Scary," he repeated, melting into his father's embrace. Harry held him carefully.

"All right… that's all right, love. You're not alone. Lots of people feel the same way, we're going to figure it out, okay?" he questioned, planting a kiss to his son's forehead. This was so stressful. Harry could deal with the not talking. He could handle the symptoms that came along with it, like Zayn's perfectionist tendencies and his picky eating. He had gone through many of those things with Liam. But DSI… sensory problems were new to Harry. How would he be able to accommodate for Zayn if his son didn't speak unless spoken to?

"I want to go home," Zayn said, finally settling into big boy sentences. Harry sighed, nuzzling his nose into his son's hair.

"Me, too, buddy. Let's go."

* * *

Zayn is further diagnosed with Sensory Integration Dysfunction (DSI).

* * *

"Oh, no, the poor kid…" Louis despaired after Harry explained the diagnosis. He and Niall had met the Styles family for a night at Chuck E. Cheese. Niall, naturally, was bundled up in Louis's arms; although, he had gone outside of his comfort zone a little earlier in the day. The three-year-old had played in the ball-pit by himself for a few minutes before working his way back to Louis. Harry could see him improving, and it was relieving to say the least.

"I know… His teacher says she saw it coming. He holds his hands over his ears during class a lot? I wish she would have mentioned that to me," he complained, keeping a careful eye on the boy in question as he crawled through the playplace.

"What are the next steps? Like… how is it affecting him? What are you gonna do?" Louis questioned, subconsciously rubbing Niall's back as he spoke. Harry smiled at the sight in spite of himself. There was something alluring about Louis being such a good dad… He couldn't help but find himself attracted to him.

He shook himself out of it. "Um… Well, he has to start going to OT appointments. I don't really know what that is… I just… I don't get it. Like he's fine when he can see me, you know? Like… Chuck E. Cheese is filled with sounds and lights and stuff, but he's content to be in the gym… it's just he gets to school, and he's so anxious, and he feels so alone, and everything makes him want to shut down. It's concerning," he admitted, scratching at one of his arms anxiously. It was hard having two sons with so many emotional problems.

However, it was because they had so many issues that Harry had adopted them in the first place. They needed someone.

"Aw, I feel so bad for-" Louis's sympathies were cut off when a very familiar shriek pierced through the arcade. Harry's head whipped around to see Liam crying on the ground with a scraped knee. He was about to stand up and go help him, when he realized that Louis was already there, little Niall resting in a highchair and looking confused with his dad across the room.

"Don't worry, I always carry band-aids," Harry heard Louis promise. The older man quickly plastered Liam's knee -with anti-bacterial cream and everything- and held his hand out to Liam for a high five. Liam reciprocated the gesture, and Louis ruffled his hair. "There's a good lad. You were so brave," he complimented.

Liam's eyes watered a little bit before he flung himself at Louis, holding on with a death grip. Louis merely carried him over to Harry.

"I think this belongs to you," he smiled, passing Liam off. Harry held him immediately, frowning and running his fingers through the seven-year-old's hair. He couldn't believe that he had let Louis touch him and help him like that, especially when he had just hurt himself. Liam was usually so scared of adults other than Harry. It was surprising but… welcome.

"Do you wanna say thank you to Louis for helping you?" he asked, wanting Liam to mind his manners.

"Thank you, Louis," Liam chirped despite his distress over his scraped knee. Harry bit his lip. If he had been attracted to Louis fathering Niall, then he was absolutely hell bent on him after seeing him take care of Liam.

* * *

Louis groaned as he flipped through the remaining pages of the contract he was translating. He had at least fifty more pages to finish for this one, and a stack of other French works on his desk. He knew he shouldn't have taken on all of these assignments, but it was December. And that meant Christmas time.

Niall had so far had pretty crappy Christmases. Or… well, actually, for most of them, so far, he had still been a baby. but last year had been… traumatic to say the least, and Louis wanted to make it up to him.

"Up, up!" Niall asked from the floor, lifting up his arms so his daddy would carry him. Louis smiled and took the boy into his arms.

"Hi, bub. Guess who is going to get lots of gifts from Santa this year?" Louis asked, tickling the blonde's stomach to make him laugh. Niall squealed, and Louis couldn't help but giggle right with him. "That's right, you are! But only if you're good and are quiet while daddy works, all right?" he asked.

He would never finish all of this work if Niall wasn't on his best behavior. No translations meant no money, and Louis had too many expenses to spend a lot on Niall without working for it. There was the rent, the water, the electric, the insurance, the gas, the car… not to mention Niall was too behind to even think about potty training, so there were all his diapers. Plus, the little boy was always getting called in for pediatric appointments, and Dr. Newsome wasn't exactly cheap. Niall had a lot of expenses.

Christmas would just have to factor in as one of them.

"Train fo' Christmas," Niall said, snuggling with a stuffed elephant and making 'choo choo' noises. Louis grinned fondly, pulling his son in closer. (Louis was just as clingy with Niall as the toddler was with him.)

"Of course, a train for Christmas," he promised, writing himself a reminder to book another translating job to pay for a set of train tracks and a few Thomas the Train toys.

* * *

Harry sighed at Liam's closed bedroom door. The seven-year-old had been locked inside his room all day, and it was starting to wear on his father. Harry knew that Liam struggled to process negative emotions and that he sometimes needed to calm himself down before he could talk to anyone about them, but his little Li-Li had been hidden away all day. It was getting worrisome.

Harry dropped the basket of clean clothes he had been carrying in the hallway and knocked on Liam's door. "Liam, love, how about you let me in now?" he asked. There was shuffling on the other side of the wall.

"No!" Liam shouted back. Harry couldn't help but sigh again, reaching for the key he kept on the doorframe just in case Liam kept resisting.

"Sweetheart, you've missed breakfast and lunch already. I know you must be hungry. Let's talk, and then we can get you something to eat, yeah? I have apples and peanut butter for you if you want," he tempted, all but trying to bribe his son into coming out. Some thudding noises emanated from Liam's room, and Harry could practically see his little boy kicking his feet on the floor.

"No, I don't want to!" he shrilled. Harry hummed and swept his hair out of his face. He wavered in place for a moment, struggling to decide what to say.

"Liam, sweetheart, how about if you just let me make sure you're all right?" he asked gently, one hand pressed against the grain of the door. Liam didn't say anything, but within a few moments, the door unlocked with a click. Harry entered the room slowly, but Liam rushed at him fast, all but forcing his dad to sweep him up in a hug.

"Sorry," he mumbled, mouth wet on Harry's neck as he pressed his nose into his daddy's shoulder.

"I just wish you would stop shutting me out, Liam. I'm your daddy, yeah? I'm supposed to be here for you when you don't feel good. I'm supposed to help you figure out what's wrong and keep you safe," he reminded him, unsure how to make things any clearer. He felt like he was constantly talking about this with Liam, constantly reassuring him that there was nothing to be afraid of. But Liam didn't trust himself to speak, and he didn't trust Harry to listen.

"I don't like talkin' about things, I just want them to be done," Liam complained. His young voice was wavering in a way that broke Harry's heart.

Harry snuggled him in tighter and sat them both down on the bed. "Liam…" he trailed off, biting his bottom lip for a moment to keep himself together. "Liam, honey, it is over. No one is going to hurt you, okay?" he questioned, and Liam quivered in his arms.

"But it doesn't feel that way… I'm… I'm really scared, dad, I'm really scared," he admitted. The little boy practically choked the words out, like it hurt him to say, like it scared him to voice aloud. Harry just kissed his temple and rubbed his back.

"Oh, Li-Li… That's okay. It's okay that you're scared. You won't always feel that way, I promise. But we  _have_  to get you talking about these things if you're ever going to feel better. And we  _have_  to get you out of your room, and playing with friends, and eating properly. It's important that you start growing into the brave little man you're supposed to be," he explained, knuckles tracing comforting circles on the younger's back. "You can't grow up if you're trapped in this room."

Liam shuddered against him, and Harry recognized he was crying. He didn't press him. He just sat back and let his baby sob it out against his chest. It was a good start, at least. Liam was crying with him instead of all alone.

"Liam, honey," Harry started once Liam had started to calm down a bit. "How about if you just tell me what made you feel bad in the first place, okay? And then we can get you those apple slices," he offered.

"Ants on a log."

"Huh?"

"I want ants on a log, daddy," Liam said, pulling back and scrubbing at his cute, wet button nose.

Harry laughed. "With celery or pretzels?" he questioned, and Liam rolled his eyes.

"Pretzels," he answered. "And chocolate chips, not raisins."

Harry smiled and kissed Liam's forehead, his big hands steadying his son on his lap. Liam's much smaller hands were tangled up in Harry's t-shirt. "I'll see what I can do, babes. Now would you please tell me why you wouldn't come outside today?" he inquired.

Liam huffed and tightened his grip on Harry's shirt. "I… I slipped on the stairs," he replied, looking rather sheepish. It was so cute, Harry wanted to laugh, but he didn't dare. Instead he hummed sympathetically. He didn't expect Liam to say anything else, but his son didn't stop there. "I kept thinking I was getting pushed, even though no one was there. Like mommy was pushing me, except she wasn't," he explained.

Harry huffed out a breath of air. "All right. We've talked about that with Dr. Newsome before. Do you remember what that's called?" he questioned. Liam blinked blankly at Harry for a moment before a disgruntled look swept over his face.

"A flashback," he answered, like he was in his second grade classroom instead of here with Harry.

"Yeah, love. A flashback. And yours last a really long time, especially when you don't have someone to remind you where you are and who you're with. Do you think next time you can  _please_  not hide from me? I know that can be scary for you, but I can help," he swore. Liam looked at him -eyes wide and nervous- before he nodded. A smile spread across Harry's face. "Good. That's really good, Liam. Thank you. How about those ants on a log now, yeah? With celery and raisins, not chocolate chips?"

"No! The other way!" Liam yelped with a smile, and Harry just laughed, carrying his son downstairs.

* * *

"Okay, Niall, first one line like this… No, not that way… No… No, Niall, listen, just like this… Perfect! Okay, now make one next to it; here, I'll help. Okay, good and now a slashy one in between! Good! That's how you make an 'N'!"

It was officially much too cold for the boys to play outside comfortably anymore, but that didn't stop the Styles/Tomlinson family playdates. Instead of hanging out at the park, they usually bummed around Harry's house. That way, Zayn and Liam had all their favorite toys to play with. It was rather boring for them to be stuck with all of Niall's baby toys, and the three-year-old was typically happy anywhere, so long as Louis was with him.

"Now, one straight line… good! And a polka dot on top! That's an 'i', Niall! You're doing really great!" Zayn chirped.

Harry's head whipped up from his newspaper as he realized he was hearing Zayn  _talk_. To  _Niall_. Zayn had never talked to Niall before; he barely talked to anyone outside of Harry and Liam.

"Zayn, sweetheart," Harry said slowly. As the five-year-old's eyes met his, his happy smile faltered a bit. Harry was quick look reassuring. "Whatchya doin' with Niall?" he asked.

"M'teachin' him to spell, Daddy! Look!" Zayn held up the sheet of paper with Niall's messy scrawl. It was barely discernable as letters, but the look on Zayn's face was so happy and proud that Harry couldn't help but smile.

"Good job, buddy! You're doing great!" he promised. Zayn preened under the attention and went back to teaching Niall letters while Harry went back to his newspaper.

"Coffee for you, and tea for me," Louis said when he re-entered the room a few minutes later. He had gotten up a few minutes ago to fetch them both drinks, and by the look of the two very full mugs in his hands, he had just finished. Zayn's voice didn't hide in the slightest as Louis came in.

"Listen," Harry demanded, and Louis paused. His eyes widened as he saw Zayn chattering away to a happy, unstressed Niall. The blond didn't even seem to notice that Louis was in the room, he just kept listening to Zayn. For that matter, Niall hadn't even seemed distressed that Louis had left in the first place.

Louis shook himself out of his daze and passed Harry his mug. "Looks like someone's making friends," he commented, sounding as confused but pleased as Harry did.

"Yeah, looks like it."

* * *

Louis was starting to get anxious as he watched Zayn and Niall play together.

Normally, whenever Louis saw Niall compared to any other five-year-old, he looked like an infant. However, Zayn's growth was just as stunted as Niall and they seemed like normal sizes when paired together. In addition, Niall's mental development was far behind the average five-year-old, but Zayn seemed to be his equal. He had two years on him, of course, but he didn't have those two years plus however much Niall was set back.

It was only natural that the two become best of friends. Niall looked up to Zayn like he would a big brother. He was always toddling along behind him, trying to keep up and copy whatever Zayn was doing. Sure, Zayn didn't talk to Niall all that often, but somehow, that didn't seem to get in the way. In fact, Niall used Zayn's silence to make his own voice heard.

Louis had never heard so many words come out of Niall in a row. Suddenly, his little boy was chattering away like a normal three-year-old, thanks to Zayn. The blond even seemed comfortable when Louis left the room for a minute, providing Zayn was around.

It was nearly unbearable.

_Louis_  was supposed to be the one Niall talked to.  _Louis_  was supposed to be the one Niall felt comfortable around.  _Louis_  was supposed to be Niall's best friend, his confidant, his playmate, his favorite, his dad…

He felt immature (he was jealous of a five-year-old, for crying out loud) but sometimes Louis forgot just how much he relied on Niall. Sometimes his son was the only thing that could make Louis smile, and it hurt to see him so happy with someone else.

"Hey, you okay?" Harry asked, breaking into Louis's thoughts as he watched Zayn and Niall build with chunky, kid-sized legos on the carpet. Louis wrung his hands together, not sure if he should fess up or try to man up and get over it.

In the end, Harry's warm green eyes were too caring and reassuring to say no to.

"I'm used to Niall being mine and all mine," Louis admitted with a shrug, "But it seems like a certain special someone has stolen him away." He nodded to the two boys playing on the floor. As if to add insult to injury, a bright smile lit up Niall's face as he made towers with Zayn.

Harry frowned. Louis watched as the younger man tentatively reached out to put a hand on his knee, as if he wasn't sure he was allowed to touch. "Well, like… aren't you at least a little happy? Cause… Cause I know this is  _really_  good for Zayn. Whenever he's in the mood to talk, it's always about his friend Niall and 'When's the next time I get to see him, daddy?' and 'Do you think I can play with him again soon?' and 'Daddy, do you think Niall and I should play with this toy or that one?'. Like… Like he's never had a buddy before, and he's really excited," Harry explained, chewing on his bottom lip. "Isn't it, like… good for Niall, too?"

Louis sighed. "I mean, I guess, just… I feel so… empty without him. Like without him in my bed, without him in my arms, without him by my side, and um…" he trailed off as tears suddenly sprocketed to his eyes.

"And what?" Harry asked. Louis couldn't look at him, but he felt the couch dip a bit as Harry scooted closer.

"And I just… I'm all Niall has, but… but he's all I have, too, you know? When I left Jace, it was just me and him against the world, and… and, I mean, I know that this is good for him, and that this is a sign that he is growing and getting healthier, but… I don't know if I'm growing with him and this is really hard to watch." Louis tried to keep his voice low, so the kids didn't tap into the fact that he was crying. Niall didn't need to hear anything more about Jace, not now, and none of the boys needed to be further traumatized by Louis nearly sobbing on Harry's couch.

"Jace… That would be the worst human being in the world, right?" Harry asked, obviously thinking back quite awhile.

Louis nodded. "Jace is my ex…" Louis started, unsure if he should continue the story or not. He leaned over, elbows on his knees and hands threaded through his hair. "He's, um… He's also the one who…" Louis couldn't say it. He couldn't admit to Harry that his  _ex-boyfriend_  was the one to  _molest his son_ when he was just two years old. He looked to the other man helplessly.

"Who what, Louis?" Harry asked, obviously confused.

Louis didn't answer, just vaguely gestured at Niall. Harry's eyes widened in realization, and a gasp fell past his lip. Louis's stomach flipflopped as Harry ripped his hand off of Louis's knee.

"Louis are you-" Harry cut himself off, his eyes darting to the kids playing on the carpet as he realized how loud he was being. "I mean, how do you know?"

Louis huffed out a sigh. "I walked in on him with like… his fingers inside him. But before that Niall had been complaining about his throat hurting for a few weeks; I thought he was just sick. Turns out Jace had been forcing him to suck him off, and… fuck, God knows how long he was touching him before that," he explained as stoically as he could, but his voice was wavering and tears threatened to spill over his lashes.

"Oh, Lou…" Harry said sympathetically, but it was obvious by the look on his face, that he didn't know how to respond. Meanwhile, Louis couldn't shut himself up.

"Like, I kept telling Jace, 'He's been sick for weeks, we should take him to the doctor.' And he kept saying, 'No, no, don't be too fussy, it's just a cold. Give him some children's pain medicine like all the websites say, he'll be fine.' So I listened, but… but I should have known. He never loved Niall like I did. Niall was never his; he didn't come from his genes you know? And like… he never wanted to help him when he woke up crying as a baby. He refused to change diapers, he wouldn't help me feed him, or wipe his nose, or tie his shoes.  _Who knows_ what he was doing and saying to him when I left them alone together… I don't know what kind of fantasy I was living while Niall was going through absolute hell."

Harry tutted at him. Louis didn't turn to look at him, but he felt a huge hand come to rest on his back, rubbing comfortingly up and down his spine. "I mean… you couldn't have known," Harry reasoned, "Don't blame yourself."

" _You_  try not blaming yourself. You weren't the cause of your kids' problems. You're just the solution. I have to… I have to somehow be both." It's the first time Louis as ever admitted to just how hard it is to raise Niall. He felt like he had  _ruined_ him. Niall had been the cutest little baby, all soft edges and blond hair. Now all the innocence had been taken from him and Louis was to blame.

"You know?" Harry asked, seemingly noticing that this was all too much for Louis to talk about and too serious for young boys to listen in on. "I think you've spent much too long caring for somebody else, yeah? Even if that somebody else is as cute as Niall. Let's take care of you, Louis okay?" he asked.

Louis's eyes finally flickered up to meet Harry's. "Yeah… yeah, okay," he agreed, collapsing into Harry for a well-deserved hug.

He expected the embrace to only last for a couple moments, but Harry didn't let go. "Don't worry, Louis, I've got you," he promised, and Louis's shoulders shuddered. He was so tired. He had been carrying this weight of losing Jace on his shoulders for such a long time, and all of a sudden, he was starting to let it go.

"I care for you very much, Harry," he admitted. He muttered the words into the other boy's shoulder, embarrassed and scared by how much he meant them.

"I care about you, too, Lou. Whatever, whenever: I'm here."

* * *

Harry glared at himself in the mirror as he brushed his teeth. His hair was up in a bun, a few loose curls escaping by the base of his neck. He had just changed into his own pajamas after managing to get Liam and Zayn into bed, and he was exhausted.

Ever since Louis had opened up about Jace on his couch, he couldn't stop thinking about the Tomlinson family. His heart ached whenever he thought about the pain the two boys must be carrying. To be stabbed in the back so brutally by a member of your own family…

To Harry, it was unimaginable.

He valued family above all other things. He had adopted kids before settling down with someone, just to speed the process along. He hated coming home to an empty house; he loved having a seven-year-old and a five-year-old to fill up his home. When Harry grew up in foster care he always perceived family to be this great, unbreakable bond. Family was supposed to help each other and love each other…

But Jace had hurt Louis and Niall. He had abused both of their hearts and forced a little boy to do things he wasn't ready for. It was disgusting.

Harry had heard a lot of sad stories about kids. He had attended all kinds of seminars and support groups to keep up with Zayn and Liam. However, never before had a story stuck to him so deeply. He couldn't shake it from his mind, and Harry found himself blanking out while he packed up backpacks and made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in the morning.

For the thirtieth time that day, Harry shook all thoughts about Louis and Niall away. He spat in the sink and rinsed his mouth flopping into bed a moment later.

The second he rested his head on the pillow, the Tomlinson's entered his mind again.

They needed help, and Harry knew it. They also needed to be in his life. It was intimidating, to say the least, to try to come into the heart of a man who had been so hurt by the last person he cared about. However, Harry couldn't imagine going a day without Louis.

In fact, he doubted anyone in his family could go without Louis and Niall. Zayn and Niall had made best friends, and Liam had warmed up to Louis in the best way possible.

Maybe it was time to take their relationship to the next level.

* * *

"What do you think about me asking Louis on a date?" Harry asked the next day after sitting both of his sons down on the couch. Liam looked up at him with his bushy eyebrows nestled together.

"But Louis is a boy. And so are you," he countered, and Harry nearly slapped himself in the face.

Right. Sexuality. He had never really discussed the fact that he was bisexual with his sons. There had never been a need to, really. There hadn't been a lot of time for dating lately, not while Harry was trying to balance work with taking care of two very needy, very dependant, very scared and confused little boys all on his own. Louis was the first person to fit so seamlessly into their lives.

Harry suddenly realized just how long it had been since he'd been on a date.

"Right… Louis and I are both boys," he admitted, clasping his hands together. "However, even though Louis is a man and so am I, I really love him, and I would like to do more with him than just inviting him over for dinner and hanging out with you guys."

Zayn kicked his feet, seemingly understanding, while Liam's nose crinkled. "You mean like holding hands and kissing and stuff?" Liam asked.

Harry bit back a laugh. "Yeah. Like holding hands and kissing and stuff," he agreed, ruffling Liam's hair.

"All right then," Liam agreed. Because, actually, it wasn't hard for kids to understand homosexuality, and Harry knew that. It was easier to explain it to someone young with their mind wide open than to someone older with preconceived judgement. A smile lit up Harry's face.

"Good! I just wanna make  _really_  sure you're okay with it, though. You have to know what dating Louis would mean for our family," he started. Liam and Zayn had already gone through enough. Harry didn't want there to be any surprises if things with Louis didn't work out or if something bad happened in their relationship. "If Louis and I get together that means we get to see him much more often -and Zayn, you'd get to play with Niall a whole lot more- and there's a small chance he could be another dad to you guys. If we all decide that we want him to live with us, that is."

"Louis could be my dad?" Liam asked. Zayn looked just as confused, though he didn't voice any of this thoughts. The five-year-old had been silent all day.

Harry scratched at the back of his neck. "Maybe. But that would be a really long way off, like… maybe when you're nine or ten, you know? And only if you both think that it's a good idea."

Liam put his thinking face on. "I think… I like Louis. But I just like you the most. You're good for now," he decided. Harry beamed and pulled Liam into his lap.

"That's great, Liam! I think I'm good for now, too. But maybe one day, you'll want someone else to be there for you, too. Maybe when you trust Louis a bit more… And if you don't, that is okay, too," he promised before his face fell a bit. "And also… Louis and Niall might not want to be part of our family. They have to make choices, too," he explained.

Liam rubbed his cute little cheeks with both hands. "So either Louis is gonna be another daddy a  _really_  long time from now.  _Or_  he's not going to be. But everybody gets to do a lot of the choosing."

Harry nodded. "Right. But right now I'm just asking for one date. So you'd be home with a babysitter. Does that sound okay?" he questioned, satisfied that he'd laid out enough groundwork to cover the basics. It was probably a bit overwhelming for his kids to hear about all the changes that could happen all at once, and he knew they probably still didn't fully understand what their dad being in a relationship could mean for their family, but Harry was satisfied that they knew enough to make a decision on whether or not it was something they could be okay with.

"Yes, you can go on a date with Louis. And can Jamie come babysit? I like Jamie," Liam replied, earning him a sloppy kiss on the cheek from Harry.

"Of course, I can call Jamie! Zayn, does that sound okay to you?" he questioned. The five-year-old nodded his head and lifted his arms out for some attention. Harry settled him on the other half of his lap. "Great! Now who wants peanut butter and banana sandwiches for lunch?"

"Me!" Liam squealed, leaping off of Harry's lap and running into the kitchen. Zayn clapped his hands appreciatively, and Harry smiled. He kissed his son on the head.

"You're a great kid, Zayn. I'm gonna do my best to take great care of you."

* * *

Louis let out a flustered gasp as his phone rang midway through trying to get Niall to use the potty. He had been trying to get Niall out of diapers for what felt like ages, but Niall just wasn't getting it. "You stay right there, mister," Louis said before turning to grab his phone off of the bathtub ledge. "Hello?" he answered on speaker phone, turning back to Niall and holding his hands as he waited for him to use the bathroom.

"Hey, Louis? It's Harry. I was wondering if maybe you'd want to go to Amani with me, yeah? I'll drive, and pay, and walk you back up to your apartment afterwards and everything," he offered, voice crackling a bit over the line.

Louis hummed, distracted. He couldn't help but silently beg Niall to use the tiny toilet seat he had set up as he listened to Harry. "Amani? That's a little expensive. And I think it's a bit too formal to take the kids."

"I know, that's why I offered to pay. And… And I was hoping we could leave the kids at home. So, like… you know, it's just you and me. Like a date."

Louis's hands tightened a bit on Niall's.

He turned off the speakerphone and pressed his mobile to his ear. "I'm sorry, a date?" he asked, anxiety making his blood run cold. It had only been a year since he'd left Jace, and God knows that was a messy break up. He didn't know if he was emotionally ready to put himself back out there, yet.

"Yeah, a date. I talked to the boys about it, and they seem fine. Actually, Zayn seems thrilled. He was hoping Niall could come hang out while Jamie, our favorite babysitter, looked after them? I thought it would be a good way for Niall to leave your side for a few hours, and… and I thought it would be good for us, too," Harry replied. Louis couldn't help but notice the sudden nervousness in the other boy's voice.

"Good for us," he repeated, feeling like a parrot. He couldn't seem to do anything but repeat what Harry was saying.

"Mhm, good for us."

Louis bit his lip. Would it be good for him? A year without going on a date was a long time… And it wasn't like he was still getting over Jace; Louis absolutely hated him. And Harry was sweet. Maybe they hadn't known each other for all that long, but Louis couldn't say he didn't have a bit of a crush on him. He'd been attracted to Harry since they had first met, and they had so much to talk about…

Louis had always appreciated the way Harry understood him. He knew what it was like to be a dad to a kid with emotional problems. He always seemed to tune in to how Louis was feeling, and he asked him if everything was okay at just the right times. Plus, he trusted Harry. Watching him with his own kids was enough to prove that he was better than Jace. He would never hurt Niall, or anyone for that matter, and that was an attractive and necessary quality to Louis.

"Yeah… Yeah, I think it would be," Louis agreed. "You pick the time, and I'll get Niall and myself ready to go," he promised. Harry made a delighted noise over the phone.

"Great! I'm so glad you said yes, I was so worried! I'll call for a reservation right now, and I'll let you know! Give Niall a hello from me when you hang up!" Harry replied, and Louis huffed out a laugh.

"Will do. See you, Harry."

"See you, Louis!"

Louis hung up the phone and put it on the floor beside him. He looked up at his son. "Hear that Niall? Daddy is going on a date. Doesn't that make you want to go potty?" Niall shook his head, looking miserably down at his bare legs. A fond smile took over Louis's lips and he kissed his son through his hair. "I didn't think so."

* * *

"Have I mentioned how good I think you look?"

"Yes, this would be the fourth time, actually," Louis smirked over a glass of wine. It was so strange to be drinking alcohol. Louis hadn't had a drink since Niall had been born and he had to be in daddy-mode 24/7 to pick up Jace's slack. It was good to feel like a grownup again.

Harry smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, I just don't think I've seen you all dressed up before," he replied. "Look at you, you've got a sports coat on and everything!"

Louis blushed. "You know, I used to think the best part about working from home is that you never have to dress up, but now I'm starting to think it's a missed fashion opportunity."

Harry and Louis's date had been going swimmingly. When Louis had dropped Niall off, he was so invested in playing with Zayn that he hadn't noticed Louis leaving. The conversation in the car ride over wasn't near as awkward as Louis had thought it was going to be, and things with Harry were as pleasant as usual. He had even let Louis order off the menu for him, considering it was written in French.

Harry looked to be about to respond, but his phone starting to ring cut him off. The younger man checked the caller ID and frowned. "It's Jamie," he said, anxiety clear in his voice. Louis scooted his chair around the table.

"Let me hear," he instructed as Harry took the call. He held the phone up between their ears.

"Mr. Styles? Things aren't going so well." Jamie's voice was just discernable over the sound of crying and screeching.  _Niall's_  crying and screeching. "Niall realized his dad left, and he started crying like you said he would, but now he won't  _stop_. It's been ages," she admonished. Louis frowned, disappointed.

"He hasn't relaxed at all?" Harry asked, sounding just as discouraged.

"No. And Zayn isn't taking it all too well. I think it's too much noise for him? Like the whole DSI thing, or whatever the letters are? He's not… he's not moving so much, just sitting there crying, and he doesn't talk so… so I don't know what to do, especially when Niall's screaming and I don't want to put him down, and Liam is locked in his room, and no one is happy, and, and, and-"

"Jamie, Jamie, just relax," Harry instructed just as the waiter sat down their food by their table. Harry put his hand over the speaker and looked up at their server. "I'm sorry, I think we need to get going. Would you mind boxing these up and bringing us the check?" he asked, waving in thanks as the waiter complied.

"It's just that I think you may need to come home," Jamie said desperately.

Harry put his hand on Louis's knee, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Yes, we'll be home in twenty minutes. And don't worry, none of this is your fault, not Niall, not Zayn, not Liam. Just tell everyone we'll be home as quick as can be, okay?" he asked.

Jamie sniffed over the phone, and Louis realized she was crying. "Okay," she answered.

"Okay, Jamie. You're doing great. I'm going to call the house phone in a minute, and you can pass it to Zayn? And then I'm going to have Louis call your number and you can give the phone to Niall."

Jamie agreed tearily and hung up just as the waiter gave them the bill. Harry paid and grabbed their boxed up meals, ushering Louis out of the restaurant as quick as possible.

"Sorry about all this," Louis apologized, feeling like it was all his fault.

"It's fine, don't worry about it," Harry said reassuringly as they got in the car, pulling out their phones to call and talk to their distressed boys. "It's can be hard to be a single dad, believe me, I know." Once again, Louis was incredibly thankful for how understanding Harry could be.

* * *

"Hello, hello, where's my sad boy?" Louis called upon entering the Styles' house.

A very panicked Jamie appeared moments later with a weeping Niall in her arms. The blond was twisting out of her grasp, reaching to be held by Louis. "Here, take him," she practically begged. She all but threw the toddler away from her.

His daddy quickly swept him up into a hug and peppered kisses all over his face. "Hi, Niall! Hi! Look who's home! You don't have to be scared, you're okay," he promised. Already Niall's sobbing was starting to level out. The boy was obviously comforted by having his daddy with him again, and Louis knew it wouldn't take long for Niall's anxiety to subside.

Harry and Zayn were a different story.

Louis watched as Harry cradled Zayn to his chest. The five-year-old had his hands clasped over his ears, as if he hadn't yet realized the noise had stopped, and his eyes were wide and terrified. "Zayn, sweetheart, you're okay. Daddy is here, daddy will protect you. You don't have to be afraid," Harry promised.

Louis walked over as soon as Niall was mostly relaxed and rubbed Zayn's back a bit. "Look, buddy. See? Niall's okay. You're okay, too," he promised. Zayn finally responded a bit, pulling his hands away from his ears as a massive sob came out of his own throat.

"Too loud!" Zayn cried.

Harry hummed sympathetically, doing his best to calm Zayn down by telling him that things were going to be all right and that he didn't have to be scared by loud noises. Eventually, Zayn's panic also subsided, and Harry got up to pay Jamie and let her go home.

"I'm going to go upstairs and check on Liam. I think then we can maybe all watch a movie together, and you and I can actually eat something?" Harry asked uncertainly.

Louis nodded. "Yeah, that seems like a plan."

It wasn't for another hour that all five boys were squished together on the couch. Every inch Harry's and Louis's lap space was occupied, making it difficult to eat their takeaway. However, strangely enough, Louis was happier than he had been in months, despite the fact that all of the little kids surrounding him had tear stained cheeks.

"We should try this again sometime," Louis spoke over  _Night at the Museum_. Harry turned and looked at him with wide eyes before a smile emerged on his face.

"Yeah… We should."

* * *

"Does it really count as a date if I spend half of it in the bathroom trying to potty train my son?" Louis asked on the way back into the kitchen with Niall. The three-year-old still seemed reluctant to use the toilet, but he was starting to get a grasp on things. His vague understanding made it imperative that Louis helped him to make sure he did his business in the toilet rather than in his pull-ups.

"Depends. Were you thinking romantic thoughts about me while you were in there?" Harry questioned while stirring pasta at the stove top.

Louis crinkled his nose. "No. Why, would you want me to?" he asked.

Harry laughed loudly. He was so busy snickering that he nearly burned himself as he strained the noodles. "No, I suppose I wouldn't," he agreed, obviously amused, "But still. Anything can be a date if you make it one."

Louis hummed. "And how exactly, dear Harold, would we make it one."

"It's Harry. And I can tell you how not to make it one. We're definitely not having another quick one on the bathroom floor before Niall notices you're missing. We will be civilized adults and wait until all the kids are asleep," he all but scolded; although, a glimmer in his eyes said that he liked their little getaways as much as Louis did.

"Fine… But you better be grateful that Zayn and Niall like having sleepovers as much as they do; otherwise, we'd be out of luck," Louis complained.

As hard as it was to balance adult time with kid time due to the three dependant sons they were juggling, Louis found himself feeling incredibly happy with Harry. The other boy was a provider. He made Louis feel safe and cared for, and that was more than he could say about any of his previous relationships. Louis usually felt like he was running himself into the ground, he did so much for other people, and now there was finally someone supporting him.

He wrapped his arms around Harry's waist, standing up on his tiptoes to rest his chin on the taller male's shoulder. "This is nice," he murmured into the other boy's ear. Harry stopped shaking the pasta out and twisted in the hold Louis had on him to kiss his nose.

"Yeah, it is. I love you, Louis."

"I love you too, Harry."

* * *

"Hey, where have the boys gotten off to?" Louis asked, panic sweeping over him. He had his eye on Niall just a second ago. The toddler had been playing on the seesaw with Zayn, but now he was apparently elsewhere. Louis's eyes scanned the playground wildly to figure out where he had gotten off to.

"Relax, Louis. Maybe they're in the tube slide or something."

It was finally warm enough to go outside again. The boys loved playing in the fresh, spring mud and revisiting the play set they had familiarized themselves with in the fall. Liam had finally managed the monkey bars by himself, Niall could leave Louis's side as long as he was with Zayn, and Louis and Harry's relationship was coming along quite perfectly.

The sun was shining, the birds were singing. Everything was perfect…

Except Louis still couldn't find Niall.

"Harry, I can't find him. I can't find- Oh my god," Louis cut himself off as his eyes finally caught sight of man walking two little kids away from the playground: a larger one with black hair and a shorter one with blond hair.

They looked to be about four and two, but Niall and Zayn were small for their age. Their backs were turned and they were far away, but Louis was pretty sure the pair were trying to pull themselves free from the man holding onto their wrists. Furthermore, Louis knew that figure. The broad shoulders, the narrow hips...

"Harry, oh my  _god_ , grab Liam," he demanded urgently, practically gagging on his words. He leapt off the waterproof blanket and  _sprinted_  towards the trio off in the distance. Louis heard Harry calling after him, but he was blinded and deaf towards anything that wasn't his kid, his Niall, his  _baby_.

The closer he got, the more certain he became that he had spotted them just in time. He could see Niall's terrified face, features scrunched up as he cried. Zayn was toddling along beside them, but he looked just as blank and expressionless as he always did when he was overwhelmed, and the man clutching hold of them…

Jace.

Louis was screaming at his ex before the older man had a chance to realize he was there. "Don't you touch him for a  _single second_." He barreled into Jace's back, knocking his grip free from both of his boys and collecting them into his arms protectively.

"Louis, what the  _fuck?_ " Jace asked, reaching behind him to try to rub his spine. Louis kicked him in the shin furiously, his hands taken up with two emotional kids and anger expanding in his stomach.

"No,  _you_  what the fuck? These aren't your kids;  _what were you even thinking_?" Louis asked, enraged that Jace would  _dare_ put a hand on Niall again, let alone try to drag away a child that had never belonged to him.

"Actually, Niall  _is_ my kid. I just wanted to see him, and you refused to talk to me!"

"Because I have a  _restraining order_ against you, Jace.  _God_. And you've got no excuse for taking Zayn! He's not  _yours_!"

"How do  _you_ know?"

"Because he's my- he's  _Harry's_ ," Louis replied, stomping his foot once before deciding to kick Jace in the shin again just for the hell of it. He deserved it after scaring two innocent children. Niall and Zayn were both huddled to his chest, terrified, and Jace had the nerve to stand there like he had a right to take either of them. "Where were you going with them?"

"To my car."

"And  _then_  where?"

"No where! I just wanted to talk to Niall!"

"About what?"

"Stuff!"

"And  _do_  what?"

"Louis, calm down. You always make too big a deal about shit; nothing even happened!" Jace exclaimed.

Louis put his foot down. "Right because I  _stopped_  it from happening, and you're fucking  _lucky_  I stopped it from happening. You're not even allowed within 1,000 feet of me. You're  _certainly_  not allowed to touch my Niall, and you're also not allowed to touch my Zayn."

"Daddy," Niall chirped from his side. The little blond made a whining noise as he tried to crawl up further on his father. "Daddy, away."

Louis's heart broke as he looked down to see the fear on his son's face. Niall shouldn't have to deal with this. He was so, so  _young_. He shouldn't have to face the terror of being dragged away by his abuser; he should never have been abused at all. Louis hummed sadly and pressed a kiss to Niall's forehead.

Zayn, needing some attention to, spoke up. "Louis," he whispered very quietly, and Louis couldn't help but coo. Zayn had never spoken to him directly before, and he wished it could have happened during a happier time.

"I just wanted to  _talk_ to them," Jace groaned. Louis doesn't trust him for a second, and he intends to tell him so, but a large, warm hand on his shoulder cut him off.

"Jace," Harry interrupted, "We're going to be calling the police now. I advise you to not come near my family, Louis, or Niall again," he said calmly.

Louis couldn't help but be jealous of his resolve, especially as Jace scrunched up his face and walked away. He wished he could have that kind of authority. Again, he wanted to voice his thoughts, but Harry cut him off.

"Oh, Louis, that was terrifying for me, what it terrifying for you? I didn't know what you meant, 'grab Liam', and then you were running off, and then I saw he had Zayn, and then I heard you call him Jace, and are you all right? Is Niall all right? Is Zayn all right? Hi, Zayn, honey, are you so scared? You're so brave!" Harry crooned, setting Liam down so he could take Zayn from Louis and cradle him to his chest.

With both hands free, Louis was able to hold Niall the way he wanted him to. He cupped the back of the toddler's head and realized just how badly he was shaking. "Harry, I think we need to go home," was all Louis replied. He was overwhelmed to say the least. Why was Jace even there? How did he know where they were going to be?  _Did_  he know where they were going to be, or was it just a coincident? How did he manage to get so close to Niall without Louis realizing?

"Right, right, of course, of course," Harry nodded, taking Liam's hand and starting to lead them all to the parking lot. "I'll call the police while we're driving back to your apartment."

" _No_ ," Louis said sharply before realizing how harsh his reply had been. "I mean, I didn't mean my apartment 'home', I meant… your house," he finished lamely.

Harry looked at him, eyes wide in realization, before a look of understanding swept over his face. "Right, of course, my house," he agreed, and Louis couldn't help but sigh in relief. He knew he was always running to Harry in times of need, but the other man seemed to fit perfectly into his life. He couldn't imagine living without him.

* * *

It was a quiet day at the Styles' household. Everyone still seemed to be reeling from the incident at the park, and all the boys were quite content to stay in and laze around. Louis had managed to translate two contracts, Harry had designed a handful of wedding invitations and a logo for a small restaurant franchise, Liam had done all of his math homework and was now working on spelling, and Zayn and Niall had managed to color through an entire ream of paper.

"All right, Liam! Why don't you try spelling 'shark' for me?" Louis prompted, nudging the seven-year-old with his pencil to get his attention.

Liam looked up at him drowsily. Unexpectedly, Liam seemed the most affected by Jace's sudden reappearance. He had been having trouble sleeping, resulting in a mopey, exhausted second grader roaming around the house like a zombie. "S-H-A-R-K."

"Good job, Liam! Two more and you can go lie down for a little, yeah?" Louis asked. Liam didn't reply, just rested on his forearms sleepily. "Try 'dark'."

"D-A-R-K."

Harry piped up from the other side of the kitchen table. "Good job, buddy. I think you've got it. Maybe skip the last word and go take a nap," he offered, squirming as Zayn drew pictures on his ticklish inner-elbow. Now that all the paper was gone, Harry was keeping the boys entertained by letting them draw all over him in markers.

"Kay," Liam sighed, pushing himself out from the table and going upstairs.

Louis glanced over the artwork on Harry's body contemplatively. "You're quite the masterpiece," he mused, moving to sit next to the boys. He started work on a picture of a giraffe on Harry's bicep.

"I know. I've always wanted tattoos," his boyfriend replied. "Like a whole sleeve, you know?" Louis nodded in agreement, his head elsewhere. He drew a speech bubble above the giraffe's head.

"What should the giraffe say?" Louis asked no one in particular, distracted as he could possibly be.

"Hi, hi, hi!"

"Eat leafs!"

Niall and Zayn answered respectively. Louis settled on cramming in a combination of both, making both boys smile, even if neither were particularly good at reading. He wanted to show both of his kids that the heard them: Niall because he needed to know that what he said mattered -Louis had a feeling he would doubt that later in life when he realizes what it means to be molested- and Zayn because he was so quiet that it was important his words be taken seriously.

"You know he's okay," Harry assured him after a moment.

"Who?"

"Liam."

"Oh," Louis said quietly. He turned his attention back on the two little kids crowding his feet. "Okay, Niall? I think we should have you go potty and take your nap, too. Zayn, are you feeling tired?"

It turns out Zayn was not feeling tired, and Niall did not think he needed to go to the bathroom, much less nap, so the getting to bed process was a bit more difficult than anticipated. However, it was clear that the boys were tired and emotionally worn out. Their faces had been wrought with worry all day.

Eventually, Harry and Louis managed to tuck the two into Zayn's bed. Niall was out like a light the second his head hit the pillow, but Zayn begged Harry to read him a story so Louis slipped out of the room to let them have their bonding time. He was met with a distressed looking Liam in the hallway.

"Where's my dad?" Liam asked, wringing his hands together. Louis crouched down to Liam's level, figuring this was going to be a conversation that needed to be done at the same height.

"He's reading to Zayn. Why, what's wrong, honey?" Louis asked, taking Liam's hands in his own. It would have been impossible not to reach out to the younger boy, he looked so scared.

Liam's eyes bore into him for a moment. There seemed to be a lot on the tip of his tongue, but he looked too terrified to say any of it. Louis knew that Liam was still working on talking about his feelings, and Louis also knew that he wasn't Liam's dad and that Liam had trouble trusting other adults. He didn't expect him to say anything at all, much less blurt out what he was feeling. "I'm scared."

"Yeah? What of?" Louis replied, trying to guide Liam the best he could, considering the situation.

"Of… of who was gonna take Zayn and Niall. And who could've taken me. And my mom and dad, cause they could have come instead of Niall's other dad, you know? Anyone could come," Liam explained, his sweet little features twisting up in something akin to despair. Louis tutted and pulled Liam into a hug.

"Oh, sweetheart… You don't have to be scared of anyone coming to take you, okay? You have an amazing daddy who is always going to protect you, and you  _know_  that if I saw you in any kind of trouble, I'd immediately come to your rescue."

Liam looked at him doubtfully, so Louis pressed on.

"I'm not going to let you go, remember? Just like on the monkey bars? I'm always going to hold on," he promised, running a hand through Liam's growing hair. "You are going to be safe from here on out."

Louis didn't know if what he said was helpful or if it relieved any of Liam's anxiety, but it did manage to break something in Liam. All of a sudden, tears started pouring down the seven-year-olds face and his shoulders wracked with sobs. "I'm so tired," he cried, and Louis knew how he felt. Liam was too young to be made weary by the cruelties of the world, and it broke Louis's heart that he had been hurt so many times.

"That's okay, buddy. That's okay… We're going to take care of you, all right?" Louis asked, picking him up and standing up straight. He was heavy, maybe about 50 pounds, and Louis felt every single one of them as he lugged him into Harry's bedroom.

Louis lifted the covers on what had become his side of the bed. He nestled under the blankets with Liam in his arms, a comforting hand running up and down his back as he tried to get the boy's breathing under control. Harry had taught him: rub up to tell Liam to breathe in and rub down to have him breathe out.

"It's all right, Liam. You're safe. You're here with me, and Harry, and Zayn, and Niall… Everyone is safely tucked into bed, including you. You're okay, just breathe," Louis instructed. Liam gasped and sputtered as he struggled to breathe to the rhythm Louis was rubbing out on his back. Finally, though, he managed and Louis continued to subtly steady his movements -slower and slower- until he lured Liam into sleep.

Harry crawled into bed only a moment later.

"What happened to this little guy?" he asked, thumbing at the tear tracks on Liam's cheeks. Louis shrugged.

"He's just scared… He doesn't want to get taken like his brothers almost did."

Oddly enough, Harry's response was to smile at him. "You know, you keep doing that," Harry pointed out. Louis wrinkled his brow.

"Keep doing what?" he asked, confused. Harry simply reached out and took his hand.

"Keep referring to this as home… to us as family," he replied. Louis's stomach did a flip. Harry was right. The more and more time he spent here, the more he felt like these were  _his_  boys. It only made sense, Louis spent more time with Harry than away from Harry… He was practically  _living_  with Harry. And because of that, he was living with his boys and growing to love them just as much -if not more- as he loved their father.

"I'm sorry," Louis replied, and he was. This was quick paced, even for adults. He couldn't imagine what this relationship must feel like to the kids. They were probably so confused and growing so attached. Louis didn't want to mislead them or set them up for heartbreak.

"I think it's okay so long as you mean it," Harry replied, reaching out to take Louis's hand. It was only then that Louis realized the death grip he and Liam had on each other. Louis didn't think he'd be able to break himself free of the seven-year-old's grasp even if he wanted to. Which he didn't. He liked being here, taking care of Liam.

"I do mean it," Louis promised. "I do."

"Good," Harry replied, leaning over Liam's sleeping head to press a kiss to Louis's lips. It was a perfect display of how flawlessly their families seemed to be slipping together.

* * *

"Upsy daisies, Niall!" Harry chirped, lifting the three-year-old up off his lap. He spun him around in his arms, making Niall squeal in delight.

"Up, up, up!" Niall said. He was trying to climb up higher, and Harry was more than happy to assist. He put the toddler on his shoulders, smiling as little hands tangled into his curly hair. "Where we goin'?"

"To the bathroom!"

"Don't have to go!" Niall chirped back, confused.

Harry patted his leg, keeping his hands on the younger boy just in case he wobbled and started to fall. "You can always try," he promised. Harry had been trying to help Louis with getting Niall to the toilet on time whenever they were together. Niall didn't mind being left alone with Harry, anymore, so he didn't cry when the older man carted him off to the bathroom.

In fact, Niall didn't mind being left alone with Harry at all. Louis had been trapped up in a phone call with France upstairs for the past two hours, and Harry and Niall had been getting along just fine on their own while Zayn and Liam were at school. Harry had shown Niall how to paint on InDesign, and the preschooler had been having a blast, choosing all of his own colors and making all of his own designs.

Harry helped Niall with his pants when they made it to the downstairs half-bath. Niall lifted his arms to be sat on the toilet. Within seconds, the tell-tale sound of water on water was heard, and Harry immediately started cheering.

"Good job, Niall! You used the potty! You're such a big boy!" he said, as proud of Niall as he had been of Zayn and Liam when they were successfully toilet-trained.

"Big!" Niall repeated happily. "Can we tell, Daddy?"

"Sure we can, bug," Harry agreed, "But let's wash our hands first." Niall gave him a big nod in return and clambered off the toilet seat. Harry lifted him to suds up and rinse his hands. The second the blonde's feet hit the floor again he was running upstairs to find his daddy.

"Daddy, daddy, daddy!" Niall called, speeding through the house with Harry close behind. Louis met his son in the hallway, still on the phone.

"Un moment s'il vous plaît," Louis spoke into the phone before holding the receiver to his chest and picking up Niall. "Salut, mon mignon! Comment ça va?"

"Louis, sweetheart, you're doing that thing where you don't stop speaking French," Harry pointed out, fondness sweeping over him. He absolutely adored when Louis got his languages confused. Hearing him speak French so fluently was exciting to say the least, and Harry had to fight the urge to pull him into a kiss.

"Daddy, I'm a big boy!" Niall cheered before Louis could apologize.

"You are?!" Louis asked. "What did you do? Did you grow? Are you taller? Are you wider?" he asked, tickling Niall's side and making him laugh too hard to answer.

"No, no, I went potty! Not even in pull ups!" he exclaimed, and Louis cooed.

"Good job, Niall! You really  _are_  a big boy! I'm so proud of you!" he said, kissing his head before setting him back down on his feet. "Daddy's taking an important phone call, though. Can you go back to playing with Harry?" Niall gave another big nod, and Louis kissed him through his hair one more time. "Thank you."

"Come on, Niall, let's go downstairs," Harry said, extending a hand while Louis put the phone back to his hear.

"Je suis navré, mon fils avait besoin de moi… Hmm? Ah! Oui, très adorable. Il a trois ans. Mon copain est lui gardait… Oui, oui, mon copain est très adorable aussi," Harry heard Louis speak over the phone. Sometimes he wished he knew what Louis was saying.

* * *

"Harry? Yeah, I don't think I should come over tonight…"

Harry nearly dropped the phone. Louis's voice… There was something wrong, and he knew it right away. "Louis? What's going on?" he asked immediately. His heart sank as he heard a choked up sob pass through the line.

"He's… he's outside my house," Louis replied, and Harry bit his lip, a knowing feeling sweeping through him.

"Jace, you mean?"

"Yeah, Jace."

Harry couldn't help but sigh and run his fingers through his hair. Every time it seemed that their lives were finally getting better, Jace had to show up and terrify Louis and Niall all over again. What made matters worse is that Harry considered their families joined. That meant he was affecting him and his boys as well. "I'm going to call the police okay?" Harry asked. "He's not allowed within 1,000 feet, yeah? Do you have the restraining order in the house?"

"I do," Louis replied, sounding tearful. "I'm so sorry about all this. I hate that this is hurting you and your kids, as well as me and Niall."

"I'm mostly worried about you," Harry admitted with a shrug, even though he knew Louis couldn't see him. His boyfriend made a strangled noise over the line.

"I mean, I'm fine… I'm in here, and he's out there. And Niall's fine, he doesn't know what's going on, but…"

"But." Harry repeated understandingly. "I'm going to hang up and call the police for you, yeah? Call me back when things are settled? Maybe we can sleepover at your place. Zayn has missed his daily dose of Niall for the day."

Louis offered him a watery laugh. "Yeah, okay. See you later."

"See you later."

* * *

It's two in the morning, and Louis doesn't recognize the alarm blaring throughout his house. It wasn't the fire alarm, it wasn't the smoke detector beeping for batteries. It wasn't his alarm clock, or the oven timer, or the TV, or-

A child's scream filled the apartment.

Louis launched himself out of bed and rushed to Niall's room, finally recognizing the noise as the security alarm. He threw open his son's door, only to see a great hulking figure standing over the toddler's racecar bed. "For the last time, I said  _don't touch him!"_ Louis demanded, throwing himself at the man's massive frame.

"Get the fuck off of me!" Jace screamed, losing his balance as Louis attacked him. He fell to the floor with Louis on top, but Lou knew that he wasn't strong enough to keep Jace on the ground for long all by himself. He resorted to tearing at Jace's hair, pulling it out in fistfuls to keep the upper advantage.

"What kind of sick freak  _does_   _this_  to a  _three-year-old?_ Why can't you  _leave us alone?"_ Louis begged, the alarm still blaring, and Niall still crying, and Jace still screaming as Louis tore at his face and head. "You're such a piece of shit, you're such a piece of shit, Jace, I hate you so much, you're  _not even allowed to be here_."

Louis was hysterical. He continued to be hysterical for the next four minutes as he waited for police to arrive. He was still kicking and screaming as the officers barreled through the door, and they had to peel Louis off of Jace and sit him down before he realized that he was safe.

"Where's Niall, where's my baby?" he asked, frustrated, terrified, and relieved tears all running down his face and mixing on his cheeks. It felt like an eternity, but eventually a tiny bundle was placed in his arms, the beautiful sound of handcuffs locking behind him.

"We have records of the homeowner of this house owning a restraining order? Is this the perp?" a policeman asked as Louis hugged onto Niall, desperate to console him but not sure how.

"Yeah, that's my ex-boyfriend Jace. He keeps showing up, and this time I found him in my son's bedroom. He was… he wasn't touching him, but he would have had I not have been there," he explained before turning to his son. "But you're okay, Niall, you're okay. You're more than all right; daddy's gotchya. I'm here," he promised, bouncing his weeping little boy on his knee and trying to keep him calm. "You're okay, you're okay."

It felt like ages before the cops finally left, and in their absence, Louis no longer felt safe in his own home. He grabbed his keys and headed out into the cold night air, locking Niall into his carseat and driving to the only other safe place he knew: Harry's house.

"Daddy, please. Daddy,  _please,"_ Niall begged from his car seat. His little hands reached out for his father, and Louis felt absolutely awful. He knew Niall didn't want to be put down. He probably wouldn't want to be put down for weeks, but Louis needed Harry. He needed him desperately.

"Don't worry, love button, we're almost there."

When he pulled up to Harry's house there was a light on by the front door and a key under the mat. When Harry had told him that his house was open for him night and day, he really had meant it. Louis let himself in, Niall in his arms, and climbed the stairs to the master bedroom.

"We're just going to go to sleep, Niall, okay?" Louis asked in a hushed whisper, crawling in bed next to Harry. He figured everything would best be dealt with in the morning. The toddler nodded up at him in agreement, settling in to rest on his daddy's chest.

Niall would always be most important to Louis, but Harry was coming in for a close second.

* * *

Jace is sentenced to a year in prison, but for Louis it's not enough. It's not enough to see his ugly, beaten face go to jail, and it's not enough to know that one day he would be out and that he could come back to haunt them.

But Harry fixes things.

He all but insisted that Louis come to live with him, Zayn, and Liam. As much as Louis tried to fight it, to say no to their cute pleading faces, he eventually caved, leading them to today.

Move-In Day.

"Zayn, sweetheart, we're not playing with the toys, we're unpacking them," Louis redirected kindly. Zayn pouted up at him. It was one of those rare times where the nearly six-year-old didn't need words to say what he was thinking, and Louis couldn't help but laugh. "I promise, Niall will let you make a mess of all his things later, but your dad and I need the room clean for now so we can build his racecar bed."

Zayn frowned but scampered off anyway, leaving Harry and Louis with a torn up sheet of assembly instructions and Niall's bed around them in pieces. Harry squinted down at the directions and frowned. "I dunno how this is going to go," he said doubtfully. "I don't think I even own a screwdriver."

Louis smiled over at him. "We'll figure it out," he promised. So far, they'd been able to solve everything, and Louis was positive that wasn't going to stop any time soon.

* * *

Louis nudged the bowl of green beans closer to the boys at the end of the table. "C'mon, guys. They're good for you," eat up," he said encouragingly, earning frowny faces from the three kids.

Harry couldn't help but laugh. If he knew one thing about his sons, it was that green beans were absolutely off limits. Carrots were fine, beets were okay, broccoli was a  _maybe_ , but green beans were an absolute no.

He watched with some interest as Louis realized that no one was reaching to take one of the long slender vegetables. However, instead of looking disappointed like Harry figured he might, his face lit up excitedly. Harry knew this look. This was Louis's 'I have a plan' look.

"You guys are crazy. Don't you know what you can do with green beans?" he asked. Liam was the one to bite.

"No, what?" he questioned. Louis grabbed two and stuck them in his mouth to protrude out like walrus tusks. He clapped his hands and barked like a seal, making Zayn, Liam, and Niall all reach for their own green beans to do the same.

"And you know what else you can do?" Louis asked, biting off the ends of the green beans so they were shorter. He stuck them back in his mouth to be vampire fangs and hissed. The boys around the table all laughed, even Harry.

"And, and,  _and_  you can do this!" Zayn spoke up unexpectedly, pursing his lips to hold a green bean under his nose like a moustache. Louis ruffled his hair.

"Yes, you can! That's a good one, Zayn!" Louis encouraged. Liam sat up straight in his chair, wiggling about in excitement.

"Or you can do this!" he said, sticking his green beans in his mouth so they came up from his bottom lip, like an elephant's tusks. He used his arm as a trunk and made trumpeting noises, causing his family to dissolve into giggles.

"You can use one like a straw," Harry suggested, joining in. He stuck his green bean in his water and sucked as hard as he could. His cheeks went in like a fish's and he crossed his eyes to earn himself a couple snickers from the table.

"Or you can eat them," Louis suggested, grabbing six in one hand and biting the tops off of all of them at once. "Eat them like a man! Like a really tough guy!" he suggested, flexing one of his biceps.

All three little boys immediately tried to imitate him, wolfing down green beans and showing off their ropey little muscles.

Harry watched happily, realization punching him in the gut. The way Louis was looking at his kids and the way they were looking back… It said something.

Maybe he hadn't known Louis all that long, but he did know him inside and out. He knew his heart, and Louis knew his kids' hearts. They were one big happy family, like Harry always wanted.

So why not make it official?

Harry had been waiting for ages to find the person -or people- to fill the gaping hole in his household. He had thought he should wait until he was sure that could be Louis, but… but, well, he already was sure.

Louis was an amazing father. He took care of his kids; they trusted him. Harry had gained Niall's trust as well. They were all a bit broken, that much was certain, but it meant that they needed each other; that they would never leave each other. Louis would stay and take care of his children.

In that moment, Harry made the decision to marry Louis Tomlinson, even as he was sticking green beans up his nose.

* * *

"Boys," Harry starts off after he had managed to settle all the boys on the couch. He couldn't help but think back to when he asked his sons if he could just  _date_  Louis. He had promised Liam that he would wait to make Louis his daddy until he was in double digits.

However, if Liam said no, then Harry wasn't going to fight him. That was the whole point of asking. The kids came first, so if Liam, Zayn, or Niall didn't want to have a new dad, then that was just going to have to be okay with him.

"I know I promised you that you wouldn't have to worry about Louis becoming your second dad for a really, really long time," he began, biting his bottom lip as he took in the three sets of wide eyes staring at him. "But I really love him, and… if you guys do, too, then I was hoping you wouldn't mind if I asked him to marry me."

"Louis is  _my_  daddy," Niall replied, tugging at the bottom of his shirt. Harry smiled.

"Yeah, he is! If me and your daddy got married, then  _I_ would be  _your_  new dad," he explained. Niall tilted his head up at him.

"You're not him now?"

Harry laughed. "No, not  _technically_. But I could be, if you wanted. And Liam, Zayn, Louis could be yours."

"But he's living here. I thought he already was," Liam replied, looking confused, and Harry couldn't help but coo. He gave each boy a kiss on the forehead.

"You three are so sweet. It may feel like you all have two dads, and I'm really glad that it does, but we would never had made any big official decisions like that without asking you, right? Because letting someone else take care of you is a big deal, and I don't want to force you to have parents you don't want," Harry's expression softened. "You guys have had  _enough_  parents that you didn't want. Now you get to make the decision."

All three boys were quiet before Liam piped up. "I like Louis," he said. "And I think he's nice, and he's good when you're with Zayn and stuff. So I chose yes."

Relief flooded over Harry. "Okay, great! Thank you very much Liam. What do you think, Zayn?" Zayn didn't answer orally, but he did give Harry a big head nod and put his little hands on Harry's cheeks as he smiled. "Thank you, Zayn. And how about Niall? Would you mind if I asked your dad to marry him?"

"You and daddy is good," Niall said in confirmation. Harry was positively beaming.

"Okay, great! Now there's only one more person left to ask."

* * *

Harry peeped out the window with the kids as Louis left for the supermarket. His boyfriend thought he was going to pick up some ingredients they needed to make dinner, but really, Harry had just needed an excuse to get him out of the house while he stayed home with the kids.

He watched as the older man drove down the road and quickly called the boys into action.

"Zayn, Liam, Niall! Let's go outside and color with chalk!" Harry suggested, smiling at the sound of tiny feet running towards the door. Harry helped them with their shoes and windbreakers and let the boys lose with chalk on the driveway.

He drew a big box in the middle of the pavement.

"All right, guys. Just leave the space inside the box for me, and I want you three to do your best pictures all around it, okay?" he asked. The boys agreed, and soon there were dinosaurs, rainbows, stars, hearts, and all kinds of things surrounding Harry's designated space.

He checked his watch.

"Louis is going to be home really soon, fellas. Liam, can you take your brothers to the bathroom to clean up?"

"Sure!" Liam agreed, herding Zayn and Niall into the house.

Harry took the opportunity to finally make use of the space in his box. In big, pink, cursive letters, he wrote "Will you marry me? xoxo" inside of the square. Harry stood in the front yard, smiling as his boys came out to join him. Now all there was left to do was wait.

* * *

Louis's trip at the store had gone smoothly. He had all of the groceries in the backseat of the car. God knows what Harry was planning on making with a jar of peanuts, a box of jello, chicken legs, mustard seeds, apricot jelly, and a watermelon, but whatever Harry said he needed, Louis was going to get.

As excited as Louis was to get back to his family, he was confused when he saw them all sitting out on the front lawn.

Things became a little more clear as he realized that the driveway was covered in chalk drawings. Louis was sad he missed out on all the fun, until he read the message in the middle of all the art.

He parked the car half in the driveway half out, he was so overwhelmed.

Louis stumbled out of the driver's seat, hand over his mouth as he took it all in. He turned to Harry. "Are you serious?" he asked, tears in his eyes, he was so overwhelmed. Once again, this was so fast, but it felt so right.

"Yeah, dead serious," Harry replied, and god bless him, he pulled out a ring from his back pocket and got down on one knee. "I love you so much, Louis, and my boys do, too. I don't think… I don't think our family would be whole without you and Niall. I was hoping we could make it official," he said. Louis could hear the nervousness in Harry's voice and couldn't help but laugh.

"Harry of course. Oh, Harry, of course. Yes, I'd love to marry you… and be with Liam and Zayn of course, they're my best friends now," he said honestly.

There were tears shed and a passionate kiss shared, but none of it mattered. What mattered is that everything was finally going to be as it should be. Niall and Louis were finally going to have a home, and Harry, Zayn, and Liam's family would be all filled up with people they could trust. They all had their scars, still, and they all needed help, but:

You couldn't find a happier family.


End file.
